Chapter 790
The door wasn’t fully closed, giving Lena and me a clear view of Edison and Aaron sitting across from each other. Edison, in his regal presence, and Aaron, all sharp angles and effortless charisma, looked more like grandfather and grandson than father and son. Lena had mentioned before that Aaron was adopted, but I’d always wondered why Edison hadn’t just raised him as a grandson.
“Aaron, you’re at an age where this is getting ridiculous. Forget marriage—you won’t even look for a girlfriend?” Edison leaned forward. “Do you even know what people are saying about you?”
Aaron sat quietly, the overhead light casting dramatic shadows across his features. He didn’t seem remotely rattled by Edison’s frustration.
“They’re saying you’re into men!” Edison pressed. “It’s an insult to the Ace family name! People are calling it unnatural, and I won’t tolerate this kind of talk dragging our reputation down.”
Welp, Edison was definitely old-school.
Aaron finally spoke, calm as ever. “People can say whatever they want. It’s their mouths, their problem. I don’t owe anyone an explanation.”
“You might not care, but I do!” Edison snapped. “I’m telling you right now—either bring someone home, or I’ll find someone for you. You don’t even have to marry her. Just keep a girl around so people stop questioning… your ‘performance.’”
Lena and I instantly pinched each other, struggling not to burst out laughing. Edison was savage. Most guys would’ve snapped at having their, uh, bedroom skills doubted, but Aaron? Stone-cold. His voice stayed steady. “I don’t need to prove anything to anyone. As long as my future wife knows, that’s all that matters.”
“Future wife?” Edison threw up his hands. “What about right now? Get a girl, date her, marry her. Problem solved.”
Edison glanced toward the door, and Lena and I froze. Too late—he’d already spotted us eavesdropping.
Instead of calling us out, he turned back to Aaron. “I’ve already sent Lena and Keira to scope things out,” Edison said. “They’ll pick someone from the ladies here tonight. Cooperate with them.”
This wasn’t a suggestion—it was an order.
Chapter 790
Aaron’s calm demeanor cracked for the first time, a faint furrow forming between his brows. “What exactly are they scoping out?”
“If not them, then who? You? Would you have gone?” Edison huffed, his frustration palpable.
Aaron’s expression hardened back to neutral. “I won’t agree to an arranged marriage, nor will I accept anyone you choose for me.”
“Then bring someone home yourself!” Edison barked, slamming his hand on the table for emphasis.
Lena and I exchanged a quick look. Yep, definitely time to dip. But just as we started to retreat, Edison’s voice boomed, “You two girls standing outside—come in here.”
Busted. With no way out, we reluctantly shuffled into the room.
“Grandpa Edison!”
He wasted no time. “You two were listening at the door. Tell me, am I wrong to push him like this?”
Lena and I froze, caught between the frying pan and the fire.
As if that wasn’t enough, Edison turned to Aaron and upped the ante. “Lena’s younger than you, and even she had a boyfriend. Look at you—still single at your age. Aren’t you embarrassed?”
The comment hit Lena like a grenade, and I could feel her panic radiating off her. She couldn’t exactly admit she and Nate had split—especially not today, when Edison was in full Grandpa-of-the-Year mode. She nudged me with her elbow, basically screaming, ‘Help me!’
I sighed, stepped forward, and turned on the charm. “Grandpa Edison, with all due respect, that’s kind of harsh,” I said with a bright smile. “Sure, it’s illegal to get married before 18, but there’s no law saying you can’t stay single at 30. If even the government doesn’t care, why should you?”
Chapter 791