Chapter 651

Nate left the hospital with Lena, and she assumed they were headed for a hotel. But as soon as they got in the car, he asked, “Mind if we go to your place instead?”

Lena blinked, caught off guard. “You’re just trying to see if there’s some guy at my place, aren’t you?”

“Nope,” he said.

She rolled her eyes. ‘Sure, Jan. Guys and their fragile egos.’

Before she could call him out, he added, “I just don’t want to be treated like every other guy.”

Lena froze. Well, that shut her up.

So, yeah—she caved and brought him back to her apartment. Her place wasn’t exactly Grand Central Station; aside from her parents and Keira, no one ever stopped by. Not like she had anything to hide, anyway.

When they got upstairs, she unlocked the door but didn’t step inside. Instead, she threw her arms around Nate’s neck. Barefoot now, she realized how much shorter she was. Standing on her tiptoes didn’t help much either.

Frustrated, she commanded, “Pick me up.”

Nate obliged. He lifted her easily while she clung to his neck.

“Nate, let me just clear this up real quick—that whole hotel stunt was a joke, okay? Keira was doing her little drama queen act. Neither of us was with any guy that night. We shared a room, no dudes involved. And for the record, no man has ever set foot in my apartment. If you don’t believe me, take a look around—”

“Mm, I already noticed,” Nate said, his eyes casually scanning over her head.

“Exactly! No man here,” Lena said, looking way too pleased with herself.

“Then who’s that?” Nate’s voice cut through her smugness, and before she could process it, a man’s voice came from the living room.

“Lena, you brought a guy home?”

Lena whipped around, her heart nearly stopping. Standing right there, bold as day, was a man.

“Who’s he?” Nate asked, his gaze sharpening.

Lena’s brain flatlined for a solid three seconds before she practically yelled, “Uncle Aaron?! What are you doing here? And how did you even get my passcode?”

She already knew the answer. Only her mom would pull something like this.

Aaron, tall, elegant, and rocking a no-nonsense vibe, strolled over. His sharp gaze flicked to Nate. “You didn’t answer me. Who’s he?”

“Her boyfriend,” Nate said smoothly, carrying Lena into the living room and setting her on the couch.

Lena shot up from the couch. “Uncle Aaron! You show up once in a blue moon, and today you just pop in unannounced? No heads-up from you or Mom? Seriously?”

As if Nate didn’t already have the wrong idea, now her so-called uncle had to walk in and make things worse. Sure, he was her grandparents’ adopted son, but with him only being a year older than her, explaining this was going to be a nightmare.

“Your mom said you haven’t been home in a while and asked me to check on you,” Aaron said, calm as ever.

Lena blinked, stunned. ‘If Mom was so worried, why didn’t she just come herself? Why send him?’

“I’ve just been busy,” she said quickly.

Aaron’s eyes flicked to Nate. “That much is obvious.”

Lena stuck out her tongue like a kid.

Nate stepped forward and extended a hand. “Nate Neumann. Nice to meet you.”

“Aaron Ace,” he said, shaking Nate’s hand briefly before stepping back.

Lena felt her cheeks warm. “Sooo…work or family?”

Aaron, who’d been out of Seavora for years, rarely made appearances—even during the holidays. Most of her memories of him were from when they were kids, walking to school together until he switched schools in middle school.

“Work,” Aaron said, his tone as clipped as ever.

“Oh,” Lena muttered, though something about his sudden arrival felt off. “So…are you back for good?”

Aaron gave a short nod. “Mm.”

Her scalp prickled as she glanced between the two men, both standing on either side of her like they were in some silent standoff. “Uh…are you planning to crash at my place tonight?”