Trading My Ex for His Uncle

"Enough with the overthinking!" Lydia chided. "Take this time to relax. Once they're back, you'll probably be driving late nights again."

"Fair enough," Walter remarked.

In the car, Damon glanced at Nyla. "The place we're going is a bit far. You and Buddy should rest. I'll wake you when we get there."

She nodded. "Okay."

Leaning back, she closed her eyes but couldn't fall asleep. Thoughts of leaving Damon and Mason in just three days weighed heavily on her.

After a while, she opened her eyes, gazing at Damon with a mixture of longing and reluctance.

Sensing her stare, Damon turned to her briefly. "What's wrong? Can't sleep?"

"Yeah," she admitted softly. "I just wanted to look at you. Don't mind me."

Damon smiled. "Nyla, do you really think I can drive normally with you staring at me like that?"

His teasing tone made her roll her eyes. "Buddy's here. Be serious!"noveldrama

From the back seat, Mason piped up, "Mommy, I covered my eyes! Pretend I'm not here. I can't see or hear anything!"

Nyla turned around and saw that, while Mason's hands were indeed over his eyes, he was peeking through the gaps. She couldn't help but laugh.

Kids these days were so sly. When she was his age, she'd been playing with dolls, not pulling little stunts like this.

Damon chuckled, and the tension eased. The car filled with warmth and laughter.

In an upscale restaurant in Saintornia...

Drake and Alexander sat across from each other.

Drake's expression was dark with anger, while Alexander remained calm.

"Mr. Kinsey, why didn't you tell me Nyla was leaving for Meristate with Mrs. Nixon?" Drake demanded, his voice sharp.

He wasn't happy about being the last person to know the news.

Alexander raised an eyebrow. "Why

should

You're neither a member of

the Nixons nor the Kinseys.

nor the Kinseys. Lowe

you nothing."

Drake's face hardened. "Don't forget our agreement. You said you'd help me become Nyla's fiancé!"

"That was before," Alexander said smoothly. "Back when Nyla refused to return to Meristate, I needed you to deal with Prospectus Technology. But now that she's agreed to go, you're irrelevant. Besides, do you really think my aunt would ever approve of you?"

Drake sneered. "What if your apprentice finds out who you really are? Do you

think he'll stick around then?"

Before Drake had returned, he

already known Alexander was boy

training Mason as though the would one day be his successor.

Alexander's gaze turned icy. "Drake, do you think you're in a position to threaten

me?"

The Nixons viewed Drake as nothing more than a tool-a dog to be discarded once its use was over.

Drake's smile was cold. "Your aunt still needs me for her plans. You can't touch me just yet."

He added, "I'll let this go for now. But next time, it won't be so easy to pull one over on me."