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Chapter 108: Chapter 108: Girls Before Bros

Lynn Winslow only looked up at Ian Sterling after he spoke. Ian explained, ”My place is close to my manor, so I can take you to see the wolves sooner tomorrow.”

”Oh.” His intentions were written all over his face. Of course Lynn could guess what he was up to, so she decided to just go along with it.

But Ian Sterling had a flaw: give him an inch, and he’d take a mile.

As a result, Lynn Winslow couldn’t get to sleep until nearly two in the morning. Before finally drifting off, she angrily landed several punches on Ian Sterling.

Sure enough, it was almost noon when she woke up. She immediately gave Ian Sterling a hard kick and snapped, ”Ian Sterling, you really know how to push your luck.”

But her angry words had no intimidating effect whatsoever. Her voice was hoarse, light, and soft. Hearing it only made Ian Sterling’s heart flutter, and he shamelessly pounced on her again.

”Get off! You’re so annoying.” Lynn pushed him several times to no avail. Fortunately, Ian had a pang of conscience and let her off the hook. He got up to help her bathe and get ready. Although his hands wandered a bit, he didn’t dare do anything more.

Lynn hadn’t had a chance to get a good look at Ian’s villa when she arrived last night. Only now did she have some free time to take it all in.

The exterior wall was made entirely of glass, and the decor was a minimalist, almost stark, style. Lynn frowned as she walked a lap around the space before returning to the living room. The moment Ian saw her expression, he knew she disliked it.

”How about this? I’m living at your place anyway, so I’ll just have this place redecorated in whatever style you like.”

Lynn glared at him. ”I’m not the one living here. Why would you decorate it in my style?”

”But what if you want to visit in the future?” Ian moved closer to hug her, but she pushed him away with a palm to his face.

”Stop being so clingy. Let’s eat. Then I want to go see the wolves.”

Ian Sterling pursed his lips, then stood up and led her out the door by the hand.

Coincidentally, just as they got out of the car to enter the restaurant, they ran into Ethan Powell and Aiden Powell, who were also arriving, along with a beautiful, unfamiliar woman.

”Cousin Ethan,” Lynn greeted him with a smile, ignoring Aiden completely as she gave the woman a gentle nod.

Ethan Powell acknowledged her with a hum. His eyes flickered to their joined hands before he said mildly, ”Grandfather has been wanting to see you lately. When are you free?”

Lynn froze for a second, then said after a brief silence, ”If it’s no trouble for Grandfather, I can visit the Powell residence tomorrow.”

Her formal words gave Ethan a strange feeling, but he nodded anyway. He then turned to Ian, who was standing protectively beside Lynn, and teased, ”Why have you been so hard to get a hold of lately?”

Ian Sterling shrugged. ”Guess I’m just the type to choose my girl over my bros.”

”...” Ethan was exasperated. ”Fine. Want to eat with us?”

Ian knew Lynn wouldn’t want to, so he shook his head and declined.

Ethan didn’t insist. He led a sulking Aiden and the woman—who was curiously sizing Lynn up—into the restaurant.

Lynn said her goodbyes, then offered the woman a friendly smile.

The trio entered their private room. The woman sat next to Ethan, who doted on her, personally pouring her a glass of juice.

The woman frowned slightly and asked him, ”Was that your other cousin just now?”

”Yes. Lynn Winslow. She’s my aunt’s daughter. Her father is the only son of Elder Winslow from the Winslow family in Morelia.”

The woman nodded. Resting her chin on her hand, she mentally compared Ethan’s two female cousins. She shook her head and said, ”They’re truly night and day. Mia Rhodes is one of those seemingly sweet but manipulative types. She’s got a clever tongue, but her brain can’t keep up.”

She took a sip of her juice, her eyes sweeping over the silent, still-sulking Aiden, and chuckled. ”This cousin is completely different. She has an exceptional air about her, and even though she’s from the Winslow family, she doesn’t have the typical spoiled-heiress attitude.”

”That’s because you didn’t see her when she was younger,” Ethan smiled and continued. ”Every time she visited the Powell family, she’d bring a dozen or so servants in tow—butlers, nannies, chefs, pastry chefs... the whole entourage. Her temper wasn’t like it is now, either. She was much more willful back then.”

The woman, however, thought that was perfectly reasonable. She shot Ethan a sidelong glance and pursed her lips. ”With her status, she *should* be a little willful.” She reached out and pinched his ear, tugging with some force. ”What? You think being willful is a bad thing?”

Ethan hissed. He instinctively leaned in closer to her to ease the pain, explaining, ”That’s not what I think at all.”

Watching from across the table, Aiden couldn’t help but shiver. He was used to seeing his brother as an unmovable mountain, but here he was, humbly begging his sister-in-law for mercy.

Sure enough, the woman’s sharp gaze shot over to him. ”And you,” she said coldly, ”cut it out with that spoiled young master attitude. If I hear you’re acting like that again, I won’t let you off as easily as they do.”

Aiden nodded vigorously, looking at his sister-in-law with perfect obedience.

The woman let out a cold hmph, released Ethan’s ear, and leisurely took a sip of her juice.

Little did Lynn know she had made such a good impression after only a single meeting. As soon as she and Ian were in their own private room, she asked him.

”Who was that woman earlier?”

Ian replied, ”Ethan Powell’s fiancée. She’s the only daughter of the Lowell family.”

Lynn knew of the Lowell family. ”Then her grandfather is...”

Ian nodded. Tending to Lynn came more naturally to him than breathing. He poured her a glass of juice, and then, using a fork from the fresh fruit platter the waiter had brought in, began feeding her piece by piece.

Lynn glanced at her phone as she asked for his opinion. ”What do you think? What should I bring when I visit my grandfather tomorrow?”

Ian was silent for a moment before trying to dissuade her. ”Maybe you shouldn’t go. I’m afraid they’ll treat you poorly.”

Although the rumors had died down considerably, Ian was worried Mr. Powell still held a grudge and would treat Lynn badly.

Lynn looked up at him and, in a reversal of roles, began to comfort him. ”Don’t worry, I’m not an idiot. If anyone gives me a hard time, I’ll call you right away, and you can come help me put them in their place.”

Seeing he was still worried, Lynn had to lay it on a little thicker. ”Come on,” she coaxed, ”who in Quartos doesn’t know about Finn Sterling’s temper? Who would dare to bully me? Don’t worry.”

Ian had no choice but to set his worries aside for the time being. When the food arrived, he began another round of doting on Lynn as she ate.

If Nina Norton were there, she would surely be grinding her teeth in frustration. Her son was twenty-six years old, and he had never once been that considerate to her.

After their meal, the two headed for Ian’s manor in the suburbs.

Because of the heat, the pampered pack of adult wolves was resting in air-conditioned indoor enclosures. The pups were in a separate enclosure on the other side, enjoying the same luxurious treatment.

The moment Lynn stepped into the wolf building, she understood just how well Ian treated them. It wasn’t just the cleaners for the enclosures; he had hired several dedicated keepers. He had even fenced off a large swath of forest behind the building for them to play in. He also had the keepers train the wolves’ survival skills, simulating wild conditions, just in case they ever managed to escape and needed to fend for themselves.