(One Week Later)
One week had passed since the kitchen disaster. The soot was gone, but a strange new dynamic had settled over the Fernandez household. Jay Jay was being uncharacteristically submissive. Ever since the incident, she had been quietly agreeing to everything her brothers said. She answered with soft "Yes, Kuya" responses, walked on eggshells, and anticipated their every demand.
Angelo and Aries noticed the shift immediately. While their overprotective ego enjoyed the lack of rebellion, it also deeply unsettled them. They missed their stubborn, pouty little sister.
Right now, the three of them were gathered around the grand mahogany table in the Fernandez study. Spreadsheets, architectural blueprints, and financial forecasts for the new joint venture were scattered everywhere.
"The logistics framework for the northern port needs a complete overhaul," Aries muttered, rubbing his temples as he pointed at a tablet screen. "Jay, did you review the budget allocation I sent last night?"
"Yes, Aries," Jay Jay said instantly, nodding quickly. "I checked it. It's perfect. Whatever you decide on the final percentage is fine by me."
Aries paused. He traded a sharp, concerned look with Angelo. Normally, Jay Jay would argue for at least ten minutes about protecting the local community fund in that budget.
"You didn't even question the marketing cut," Angelo noted, narrowing his eyes as he leaned back in his leather chair. He studied his sister's face. She looked tired, her shoulders slightly tense. "Are you feeling okay, Jay? Keifer hasn't been slacking off on taking care of you, has he?"
"No! No, Keifer is doing amazing. He's perfect," Jay Jay said quickly, her voice a little too eager to please. "He makes sure I eat on time and handles everything. I'm just... trying to be a good sister and not cause trouble for you guys."
Angelo sighed, reaching over to gently tap her forehead with his pen. "We don't need you to be a robot, dummy. We just want you to—"
Before Angelo could finish his sentence, the heavy double doors of the study flew open. The quiet atmosphere was instantly shattered by a wave of high-pitched chatter, laughter, and the clicking of high heels.
In walked the ultimate distraction squad: Ella, Freya, Honey, Graze, Raki, and Mica.
"Surprise!" Ella announced, leading the pack with a bright, innocent smile that looked entirely rehearsed. As Aries' girlfriend, she knew exactly how to flash the perfect, sweet expression that usually disarmed him.
"Oh, thank goodness, they are doing boring business stuff," Freya laughed, immediately walking over to hang off the back of Jay Jay's chair. "Jay! Pack your things. You are being officially paraded away from corporate boredom."
Aries instantly put his pen down, his protective older brother radar going off at maximum frequency. He glared playfully at Ella. "What are you girls doing here? We are in the middle of a strategic planning session."
"Relax, Kuya Aries," Raki said, waving her hand dismissively as she took a seat on the edge of the desk. "We are just hijacking your sister for a little bit. It's a girls' night."
Honey nodded eagerly, leaning over Jay Jay's shoulder. "Yes! We are all going over to Ella's house. Just a wholesome pajama party. We'll watch movies, eat popcorn, and do facemasks."
In reality, the girls' group chat had been buzzing for three days with a completely different plan. They had VIP table reservations at the newest, most exclusive high-end pub in the metro. They knew the Fernandez brothers—and especially a fiercely possessive Keifer Watson—would never let Jay Jay go to a crowded pub in her current exhausted state. So, the "Ella's house" cover story was hatched.
Jay Jay looked up, her eyes wide with a mix of longing and anxiety. "A pajama party? Today? But the project reports..."
"The reports can wait," Mica said softly, giving Jay Jay a reassuring pat on the arm. "You've been working so hard, Jay. You look like you need a break."
Jay Jay bit her lip. She desperately wanted to go let off some steam with her friends. However, her current fear of upsetting her brothers made her hesitate. She instinctively looked at Angelo and Aries for permission.
"I don't know..." Jay Jay stammered, looking back at the girls. "Maybe I should stay and finish this. Keifer is also coming over later to bring me dinner..."
"Oh, come on, Jay!" Graze pleaded, dragging out the syllables. "Keifer can survive one night without hovering over you like a beautiful, terrifying shadow. Tell her, Aries!" Ella added, giving her boyfriend a sweet, pleading look that she knew he couldn't resist.
Angelo crossed his arms, his eyes scanning the girls. Something felt slightly off, but he couldn't pinpoint the lie. He looked down at Jay Jay, noticing how she was practically shrinking back, trying hard to resist the temptation but clearly losing the battle against her friends' puppy-dog eyes.
"If it's just a quiet night at Ella's, you should go," Angelo said slowly, testing her reaction. "You've been way too compliant lately. Go get your brain fried by reality TV instead of spreadsheets."
"See? Your brother gave the green light!" Ella cheered, grabbing Jay Jay's hands and pulling her out of the chair.
"Wait, but—" Jay Jay tried to protest, her eyes darting to Aries.
"Go," Aries commanded quietly, giving Ella a soft look before sharpening his gaze at his sister. "But your phone stays on. If we call, you answer. Understood?"
"Yes, Kuya. I'll answer right away," Jay Jay said automatically.
She looked at her five friends, who were all smiling like angels. Jay Jay completely lost the battle to resist. She smiled weakly, letting herself be dragged toward the door. "Okay. I'll go change my clothes."
Ten minutes later, Jay Jay was changed and walking out of the front entrance, completely surrounded by the giggling squad of girls. But just as they reached the grand fountain in the courtyard, a sleek, familiar black sports car pulled up with a low roar.
The door opened, and Keifer stepped out. He looked devastatingly handsome, carrying a premium insulated bag filled with the gourmet dinner he had personally prepared for his fiancé.
His dark eyes instantly locked onto Jay Jay. His gaze swept over her casual outfit, and his eyebrows twitched.
"Where are you going, baby?" Keifer asked smoothly, his deep voice carrying a tone of absolute possession. He walked right toward her, completely ignoring the wall of girls. "I brought your favorite dinner."
The girls instantly panicked. Keifer was way harder to fool than the brothers.
"Oh! Keifer!" Ella jumped in front of Jay Jay, waving her hands. "Perfect timing! But also, terrible timing. We are actually kidnapping Jay Jay right now. It's an emergency girls' night at my house!"
Keifer stopped, his eyes narrowing slightly as he looked down at Ella. "A girls' night? Today? She is too tired, Ella. She needs to rest and eat."
"We will feed her, promise!" Freya chimed in, grabbing Jay Jay's left arm while Graze grabbed the right. "We have mountains of snacks. We're just going to do facemasks and sleep. She won't lift a finger!"
Keifer ignored them and looked directly at Jay Jay. He stepped closer, reaching out to gently brush a stray strand of hair behind her ear. His touch was incredibly warm and tender. "Do you want to go, marshmallow? You don't have to force yourself if you're tired."
Jay Jay looked into his devoted eyes and felt her heart flutter. But before she could answer, Mica and Raki gently nudged her forward.
"She already said yes, Keifer! The brothers gave permission too!" Raki said, giving him a bright, dismissive smile. "Don't be such a worried fiancé. We'll bring her back perfectly safe tomorrow morning. Bye!"
"Yes, bye Keifer! Enjoy your alone time!" Honey called out as the group practically lifted Jay Jay off her feet, rushing her toward Ella's waiting SUV.
Jay Jay looked back over her shoulder, giving Keifer a helpless, apologetic wave. "I'll call you later, Keifer! Eat the dinner!"
Keifer stood by his sports car, holding the dinner bag. His expression was completely blank, but his eyes were dangerously sharp as he watched the Car speed out of the gates.
Back in the study, the moment the doors had clicked shut earlier, silence had returned to the room.
Aries slowly turned his head to look at Angelo. "Do you buy the pajama party story? My girlfriend was acting a little too sweet."
Angelo picked up his phone, his thumb already hovering over Keifer's contact name.
"Not for a single second. Call the driver. I want to know exactly which route Ella's car takes."
Just then, the study doors opened again. Keifer walked in, carrying the insulated food bag. His face was a mask of cold, calculative calm.
"They're not going to Ella's house," Keifer said flatly, tossing the bag onto the table.
Angelo smirked, holding up his phone. "We know. We were just about to track them. What's the plan, Watson?"
The girls' squad was smarter than the boys gave them credit for. They knew exactly how the minds of the Fernandez brothers and Keifer Watson operated. They knew that the moment Ella's SUV cleared the mansion gates, GPS trackers would be checked, and drivers would be questioned.
To throw the boys completely off the scent, Ella drove straight to her own house.
"Step one complete!" Ella cheered, parking the car in her driveway. "They're definitely tracking us, so being here makes our story completely airtight."
Inside Ella's house, the atmosphere shifted from "cozy pajama party" to "high-end fashion show" in a matter of seconds. Closets were thrown open. Makeup bags were dumped onto the bed.
"Wait, why are we putting on makeup for a movie night?" Jay Jay asked, blinking in confusion as Freya tried to apply a coat of glossy lipstick on her.
"Oh, Jay, you know how it is. We have to take aesthetic Instagram photos for the pajama party vibe!" Freya lied smoothly, giving her a reassuring hug.
Mica and Graze quickly helped Jay Jay change out of her oversized hoodie into a stunning, stylish dress that Ella "happened" to have in her closet. Jay Jay, still in her obedient, submissive phase, didn't question it. She just nodded, smiled weakly, and let them dress her up like a beautiful doll.
Once the coast was clear and they were confident the boys had stopped checking their real-time location, the girls quietly slipped out the back, piled into a different, untracked car, and sped off toward the city's most exclusive, high-end VIP pub.
The moment they walked into the pub, the heavy bass of the music, the flashing neon lights, and the clinking of glasses filled the air. Jay Jay's jaw dropped. She looked at her five friends, completely stunned.
"A pajama party?!" Jay Jay gasped over the music. "You guys lied!"
"Surprise, baby!" Raki laughed, pulling Jay Jay toward their reserved VIP booth. "You've been acting like a stressed-out corporate robot all week. You need a drink, some loud music, and a night to actually live a little!"
Honey nodded, waving a hand to order a round of colorful cocktails. "Exactly! If we told the boys, they would have locked you in a glass tower. Drink up!"
Jay Jay tried hard to resist. She thought of her strict brothers and her fiercely possessive fiancé, Keifer. But surrounded by her laughing, supportive friends, the pressure melted away.
She took a sip of her drink, the sweet alcohol instantly warming her up. Within an hour, the girls were laughing loudly, clinking glasses, and completely lost in the fun of the party.
Because they were in a private VIP section, a few handsome, wealthy young men from other corporate circles noticed the group of stunning women and decided to shoot their shot. Two guys walked up to their table, politely holding up their glasses to strike up a conversation.
Ella, Freya, and the rest of the girls were just casually chatting back, entirely unaware that a digital storm was brewing right above their heads.
Back at the Fernandez mansion, the boys were staring at a tracking screen that stubbornly showed Ella's car parked peacefully at her house. Keifer sat on the leather couch, his jaw clenched, his dark eyes radiating pure impatience.
"They've been way too quiet," Aries muttered, pacing back and forth.
Suddenly, the doors of the study burst open. Edrix walked in, a sleek alienware laptop open in his hands, his fingers flying across the keyboard.
"Boys, we've been played," Edrix announced, his voice dripping with cold annoyance.
Angelo sat up straight, his eyes narrowing. "What do you mean?"
"I knew Freya was acting a little too innocent today," Edrix growled, slamming the laptop down on the mahogany table so everyone could see. "I didn't trust their little car ride, so I bypassed the city's traffic feed and traced their secondary phones. They aren't at Ella's house. They are at the Blackwood VIP Lounge."
"The pub?!" Calix and Danzel exclaimed at the same time, stepping forward. Cin's eyes darkened instantly.
"It gets worse," Edrix said, his teeth gritting as he tapped a final key. "I just hacked into the pub's internal CCTV security cameras. Look at this."
The screen blinked, loading a crystal-clear, high-definition live feed of the VIP booth.
The entire room of men instantly lost their minds.
On the screen, their women were sitting in a beautifully lit booth, holding drinks, and laughing. But what made the temperature in the study drop to absolute zero was the sight of two random guys standing right at their table, leaning in close, and talking to them.
Angelo saw Honey laughing at something one of the guys said. Aries saw Ella smiling. Edrix watched Freya take a sip of her drink while looking at the intruders. Mica was chatting happily near Calix's perspective, Graze was standing close to Danzel's imaginary line of sight, and Raki was entirely unbothered by Cin's burning glare from across the digital screen.
And right in the middle of it all was Jay Jay, looking flustered but stunning in a dress they had never seen before.
The collective jealousy in the room was so thick it was suffocating. The protective, possessive instincts of seven powerful men flared up all at once.
"Who the hell are those guys?" Cin hissed, his fists clenching so hard his knuckles turned white.
"They're breathing our air. That's what they are," Danzel muttered, his calm demeanor completely evaporating as he stared at his wife, Graze, interacting with a stranger.
Calix looked like he was ready to burn the entire establishment down. "Mica is way too smiling right now. I'm going to rip that guy's jaw off."
Angelo and Aries didn't even speak. They just grabbed their suit jackets off the chairs, their expressions completely terrifying. "Get the cars," Aries ordered, his voice dangerously quiet. "Now."
Keifer, however, was the scariest of them all. He hadn't said a single word since the video loaded. He just stood up slowly, his dark eyes locked entirely on Jay Jay on the monitor. The gentle, sweet fiancé who had spent the last week carefully feeding her and brushing her hair was entirely gone. In his place was the ruthless, fiercely territorial heir of the Watson Empire.
Keifer adjusted the cuffs of his expensive jacket, a dark, devastatingly handsome smirk playing on his lips, though his eyes remained dead cold.
"They wanted a party," Keifer murmured smoothly, his deep register sending a literal chill through the room. "Let's go give them one."