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Ian Sterling gave a satisfied grunt.

Jasper Jennings, however, said helplessly, “It’s really not that serious, Finn.”

“Do you realize you’re cursing me?” Ian snorted coldly. “If your curse actually comes true, how are you going to make it up to me?”

“Have him find you a new one,” Kenneth Keller chimed in.

Ian bristled like a cat whose tail had just been stepped on. “You’re spouting nonsense!” he spat through gritted teeth.

His reaction was so amusing that the others in the voice chat couldn’t stop laughing.

Nigel Abbott suddenly joined the call. Hearing their laughter, he was a bit confused, but still asked, “Finn, what’s going on with Jared? I haven’t been able to reach him lately.”

Ian fell silent for a moment before letting out a light chuckle. “He offended my second uncle and got grounded. He’ll be let out before long.”

Nigel sensed something was off, but didn’t press the matter. Instead, he asked, “When are you coming back?”

“No rush.” Not wanting them to make a laughingstock out of him, Ian casually spun a lie. “I’m going to stay here a bit longer to keep Lynn Winslow company.”

Whether they bought it or not was anyone’s guess. All he knew was that as they each exited the call, they left behind airy chuckles. Only they knew what those laughs meant, but Ian couldn’t have cared less; his mind was entirely preoccupied with how he was going to tease Lynn tonight.

At noon, he took a relaxing nap, but woke up feeling incredibly lonely and desolate.

Leaning against the headboard, he rubbed his slightly aching forehead, a heavy weight settling in his chest. It was probably because, in the past, he had always had someone beside him during his afternoon naps—someone he could pull into his arms just by reaching out.

With a deep sigh, Ian got out of bed, freshened up, and changed his clothes. Then, he planted himself in the first-floor living room, lying in wait to catch his prey.

He glanced at his watch from time to time. When the hour seemed about right, he shoved his phone into his pocket and walked out of the villa.

His timing was impeccable. Just as he stepped outside, a black sports coupe pulled up in front of the villa next door. Lynn stepped out, her face completely expressionless.

Ian slowly walked over to the car, let out a light cough, and kept his eyes glued straight ahead.

Hearing that familiar voice, Lynn spun around. Ian was standing a short distance away. Even though he wasn’t looking at her, Lynn’s heart still skipped a beat.

When he didn’t hear a response, Ian feigned nonchalance and turned his head to look at her. He gave a shrug. “I had no idea Edward would arrange for me to stay here.”

She wondered if she could believe him. Not a single word out of his mouth was trustworthy. Lynn pursed her lips, lowered her gaze, and uttered a soft “Oh” before turning to head inside.

“Hey, wait a minute.” Ian hastily stopped her. “The AC at my place isn’t working too well, and no one’s come to fix it yet. Can I sit at your place for a bit? It’s kind of hot out.”

Lynn remained silent as she pushed the door open and walked in. Ian thought she had rejected him, but before the disappointment could even set in, Lynn turned back to look at him. “Come in. Why are you just standing there? Didn’t you say you were hot?”

Ian nodded eagerly and trotted after her. The moment they stepped through the door, Kiki and Snorts pounced on him.

They hadn’t seen Ian in months and had sorely missed their long-lost, reliable cat-dad. When he had disappeared again just moments prior, they had almost thought he was gone for good.

Lynn observed them quietly, her eyes narrowing. Catching her gaze, Ian scrambled to peel the two cats off him and sat obediently on the sofa. “Don’t worry,” he offered considerately. “I’m just going to sit here for a bit. I won’t do anything. Once the repairman arrives, I’ll head back.”

“You’d better keep your word.”

His excessively well-behaved demeanor actually made Lynn feel a prick of discomfort. She shot him a glare before marching upstairs and burying herself in the study.

She left the study door open, keeping her ears perked for any sounds from downstairs.

Ian silently played with Kiki and Snorts while glancing up toward the top of the stairs. Hearing nothing, he breathed a sigh of relief.

“Sigh, your mom is truly heartless. It’s one thing for her to just forget everything so easily, but she’s also so cold to me. It breaks my heart.”

Kiki let out a MEOW, while Snorts hopped straight onto his shoulder and leisurely licked its paws.

Amused by the two felines, he smiled, his eyes crinkling. “It’s so weird. Why was Snorts the first one brought home this time?”

Lynn had already been standing just out of sight by the second-floor staircase. Hearing Ian say this, her brows knit tightly together.

She wondered what he meant by her forgetting everything so easily, and why he said Snorts was the first one brought home.

She had suspected for a while that Ian was hiding something from her. She had originally wanted to interrogate him that morning, but his reaction had been so intense that she had been forced to drop the subject for the time being.

She wondered if she had really forgotten something. Surely not. Yet, Lynn was already beginning to doubt herself.

She quietly returned to the study, but couldn’t sit still no matter how hard she tried. She forced herself to wait a grueling half-hour before going downstairs, not wanting to make it seem like she was too hung up on Ian.

However, when she reached the ground floor, Ian was nowhere to be seen in the living room. Standing on the bottom step, Lynn bit her lip. Just as she was about to head back up, she heard the sound of the front door opening.

She turned around. Spotting her, Ian smiled and asked softly, “Why did you come down?”

Lynn hesitated for a moment before asking, “Where did you just go?”

“Oh, I got a call. I was worried I’d disturb you and you’d find me annoying, so I went outside to take it.” Ian exhaled softly and sighed. “It’s so hot out there.”

Lynn gave a brief “Mhm,” dropped a single sentence, and retreated upstairs.

“You can take your calls in here. I won’t find you annoying.”

Ian froze. He wondered if Lynn was feeling bad for him. By the time he snapped out of his daze and opened his mouth to speak, she was already upstairs. He didn’t even catch a glimpse of her retreating back, which just went to show how fast she had fled.

Ian stood rooted to the spot for a moment before bursting into a hearty chuckle.

He figured she was probably shy and worried about losing face, which was why she ran off so quickly. Regardless, because of that single sentence from Lynn, he simply couldn’t suppress the excitement bubbling up inside his chest.

Bending down, Ian scooped up Kiki and Snorts, lifting their stretched-out bodies before settling them into his arms. Humming a little tune, he sat on the sofa, his crossed legs swaying back and forth. He looked thoroughly smug.

After a moment’s thought, he pulled out his phone, snapped a picture of Kiki and Snorts, and sent it to his family group chat.

Only after sending it did he remember that everyone at home would still be asleep at this hour. Feeling like a peacock itching to flaunt his feathers but with absolutely no audience in sight, he grew restless. He simply dialed the number of the perennial night owl, Zachary Quincy.

Zachary had just gotten home. Having downed quite a few drinks, his head was swimming.

Before he could put his phone on silent, the sudden ringing made him jump. Glancing at the caller ID, he sat up abruptly to answer it, assuming Ian was calling about something urgent.

To his surprise, the moment he answered, Ian hung up. Before Zachary could even process what had happened, his WhatsApp began pinging non-stop. Notifications popped onto his screen one after another, the incessant chiming worsening his already throbbing headache.

Left with no choice, Zachary opened the app. His screen was completely flooded with cat faces—cats in every conceivable pose, cats leisurely licking their fur.

Utterly speechless, he replied: […]

Ian shot back a grinning emoji, followed by a message: [Handsome, aren’t they? My sons.]

[Handsome. And then? Who did you have them with?]