Chapter 120 Aaron spotted
Chapter 120 Aaron spotted
Lucien was already unlocking his phone, his thumb flying across the screen with clinical efficiency. I watched him in sheer disbelief. “Are you literally booking a private international flight right this second?”
He didn’t even look up from the screen, his voice completely level. “Yes. The villa is already secured.”
I shook my head, a helpless smile playing on my face. Unbelievably rich people were truly terrifying.
The Ambush
Before I could even process the fact that I was going to Indonesia, the heavy bedroom door swung open without a single courtesy knock.
Ethan marched in first, followed closely by Megan, Amara, and Mason. They all barged into the private master suite as if they personally owned the deed to the estate.
I blinked at the sudden parade of people crowding around the foot of the bed. “Do none of you actually know how doors or privacy work in this house?”
Megan offered a brilliant, unrepentant smile. “Nope. Not at all.”
Ethan’s eyes narrowed instantly, his protective older-brother radar locking onto the conversation. “I heard the word Bali thrown around in the hallway.”
Vincent groaned loudly, throwing his head back into the pillows. “No. Go away.”
Ethan folded his arms over his chest, matching his stare. “Yes.”
Lucien finally looked up from his phone, his voice pure ice. “No.”
Mason, looking thoroughly confused by the immediate hostility, frowned. “What exactly is happening right now?”
Vincent pointed an accusatory finger at the intruders. “A private vacation. Emphasis on the word private.”
Megan gasped dramatically, slapping a hand over her heart. “Without me? You’re leaving the country without your best friend?”
“Yes,” Vincent said flatly.
She looked deeply offended. “Rude.”
Amara let out a soft laugh, leaning against the doorframe as Ethan took a definitive step closer to the mattress. “I’m coming with you.”
Vincent stared at him as if he had suddenly grown a second head. “Absolutely not. You are the literal definition of a third wheel, Ethan.”
Ethan looked highly insulted. “Why?”
Vincent gestured aggressively toward me. “Because this trip is entirely for her.”
Ethan pointed a thumb directly at his own chest. “And it’s for me. I’m a package deal.”
Lucien deadpanned without missing a beat. “No.”
Megan immediately raised her hand in the air like a schoolgirl. “I officially support Ethan’s motion.”
Zane let out a long, exhausted sigh. “Of course you do.”
Then, Ethan resorted to the most shameless, underhanded tactic I had ever witnessed in my entire life. He bypassed the brothers entirely, looking straight into my eyes, and unleashed the ultimate weapon: that pitiful, wide-eyed, older-brother look that used to get him out of trouble when we were kids.
“Sarah,” he pleaded softly.
I narrowed my eyes, fighting the immediate urge to soften. “No, Ethan. Don’t do that.”
He placed a dramatic hand over his heart, tilting his head. “I work every single day to keep this perimeter safe. I am completely stressed.”
Vincent immediately stood up from the mattress, his protective instincts flaring. “Don’t you dare fold, Sarah! Resist him!”
But Ethan’s coalition was too fast. Megan jumped into the fray instantly. “He’s very stressed, Sarah! Look at his skin!”
Amara nodded solemnly. “He barely sleeps at night.”
Mason added with a shrug, “He’s incredibly cranky.”
Ethan glared over his shoulder at Mason. “Not helping, man.”
The Chaos Collective
I was laughing so hard my ribs were starting to ache. Zane leaned down close to my ear, his low, smooth voice a gentle warning. “Kitten. Resist the urge to cave. Stand your ground.”
That prompted Vincent and Lucien to join in, forming
a wall of dark masculine it energy on the bed.
"Resist."
"Don’t you dare agree."
"Stand strong, Sarah."
But the opposite side of the room immediately started their own counter-chant, led by Megan and Ethan.
"Agree!"
"Say yes!"
"Take us with you!"
"Family trip!"
I stared at them in absolute disbelief. They were actually chanting now, moving in a rhythm like a group of toddlers demanding candy. Vincent pointed a dramatic finger at me. “Don’t you fold!”
Ethan clutched his chest as if he could see right through my defenses. “She’s folding! Look at her eyes, she’s totally folding!”
“I’m not folding!” I yelled back through my laughter.
Megan lunged forward, grabbing my arm over the blankets. “You totally are. Just say yes!”
Lucien slowly rubbed his temple, looking thoroughly defeated by the absolute breakdown of his household's discipline. “This is profoundly embarrassing.”
Mason looked around the room, thoroughly amused by the Voss brothers being brought to their knees by a vacation dispute. "I really like this family dynamic."
Vincent glared at him across the space. "You're not family, kid."
Mason offered a slow, incredibly cocky smile. "Yet."
The single word hit the room like a lightning bolt. Megan’s entire face instantly flushed a violent shade of bright pink.
Oh.
Interesting. Very, very interesting.
I noticed it immediately. Vincent noticed it. Even Zane’s eyes snapped over to track the sudden spike in Megan's heart rate. Ethan, ever the protective detective, immediately pointed a finger at Mason. “What the hell was that? What does yet mean?”
Mason let out a nervous cough, suddenly clearing his throat as his bravado evaporated. “Nothing. Just a joke.”
Megan quickly looked away, staring intensely at the floorboards. Vincent’s massive grin returned with a vengeance. “Oh, there is absolutely, definitely something going on there.”
Amara burst out laughing, while Megan looked completely horrified. “Can we please stay on the actual topic? Bali?”
“No,” Vincent said gleefully. “I want to talk about this development.”
I was laughing so hard at this point that my stomach genuinely hurt. This house was completely insane. These people were entirely unhinged. But as I looked around the crowded master bedroom, a profound warmth settled deep in my chest. This was normal. This was loud, messy, chaotic, and impossible—but it was my family.
Finally, I held up a single hand, calling for order. “Stop. Everyone stop.”
The room instantly froze, every eye locking onto me. I looked over at Ethan. “You really want to come to Bali?”
He nodded with total sincerity. “Yes.”
I shifted my gaze to Megan. “You too?”
“Absolutely,” she said, her blush finally fading.
Amara smiled softly. “I’ll go wherever Ethan goes.”
Mason shrugged carelessly. “My schedule is completely free.”
Vincent looked at me with an expression of deep, personal betrayal. “This is exactly how beautiful vacations go to die, Sarah.”
Zane let out a heavy sigh of resignation, while Lucien simply pinched the bridge of his nose. I looked at the three brothers, and then offered a wide, unapologetic smile.
“Fine. Everyone comes.”
The room instantly exploded into actual, literal cheers. Megan and Amara clapped, while Ethan offered Vincent a thoroughly smug smirk. Vincent dropped face-first back onto the mattress, letting out a dramatic groan. “You betrayed us, kitten. This is pure, unadulterated suffering.”
I laughed, leaning over to pat his back. “You’ll survive, Vincent.”
Ethan moved toward the bed, gesturing with his hand. “Move over, Voss. Make room.”
Vincent glared up through his dark hair. “Don’t you dare touch my side of the bed.”
“It’s her bed,” Ethan pointed out.
“Exactly. Which makes it my bed.”
Megan laughed so hard she had to lean against the wall for support. Lucien was already silently updating the private flight manifest on his phone, his fingers moving with practiced speed, while Zane looked like a man who had completely accepted his chaotic fate.
And me? For the first time in months, I felt a deep, bubbling sensation of pure excitement. There was no lingering fear. No shadow of danger. Just the promise of golden sun, the open ocean, and beautiful chaos with the people I loved most in the world. Maybe that was enough. Maybe that was everything.
But just as Lucien went to finalize the international flight bookings, the phone in his hand let out a sharp, erratic buzz.
He checked the notification. In a fraction of a second, the ambient warmth completely drained from his face. His jaw locked. Vincent noticed the instantaneous shift, his playful demeanor vanishing as his body went rigid.
“Lucien?” Vincent asked, his voice dropping an octave. “What is it?”
Lucien slowly looked up from the screen, his eyes reverting back into two pools of cold, lethal ice.
“Aaron was just flagged by a facial recognition grid,” Lucien said, his voice cutting through the room like a blade. “He was just seen boarding a flight at the international airport.”
My smile completely faded, the warmth of the room evaporating into nothing.