THIRD PERSON POV
Ace opened the door,his expression unreadable as he faced his stepmother and Diana. "I'd rather not discuss anything you have to say here," he said, his voice cold. "Let's go somewhere else."
His stepmother raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong with here?" she asked, her tone imperious.
"I'd prefer some privacy," Ace replied, his eyes flicking to Diana before returning to his stepmother. "There's a coffee shop nearby. We can talk there."
His stepmother's expression darkened, but after a moment, she nodded. "Fine," she said. "Let's go."
At the coffee shop, his stepmother wasted no time in launching into a tirade. "How could you leave Diana all alone at home?" she demanded. "She's your wife, after all."
Ace's expression didn't change, but his eyes seemed to chill even further. He didn't respond, simply staring at his stepmother with an unyielding gaze.
Diana intervened, trying to calm the situation. "It's okay, Mother," she said. "Maybe Ace was just busy."
His stepmother's expression turned icy. "A husband is never too busy for his wife," she snapped. "You need to learn to prioritize, Ace."
He doesn't behave like he was hearing anything at all
"Answer me now" Mrs Langley barked
Ace's gaze didn't waver. " Okay , I understand," he said finally, his voice devoid of emotion.
His stepmother's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean by that?" she asked, her tone sharp.
"I mean I'll go back on Monday," Ace replied, his voice cold.
Diana's face lit up with a suppressed smile, and she quickly looked down to hide her expression. "If it's going to be a discomfort, don't bother," she said, trying to sound nonchalant.
His stepmother's expression turned even darker. "You'd do well to remember your place," she warned. "You're not in a position to complain about discomfort."
Diana excused herself to get coffee, leaving Ace and his stepmother alone. As soon as she was gone, his stepmother's demeanor changed. "You'd do well to remember who I am and what I have on you," she said, her voice low and menacing. "You do what I want when I want it done. Do you understand?"
Ace's gaze didn't waver still, but for a moment, a flicker of fear seemed to dance in his eyes. "I know," he said finally, his voice flat. "That's why I'm doing everything to please you."
His stepmother's expression softened slightly, but her eyes remained hard. "Good," she said. "Your father will be in town in two weeks. You'd better be there."
Immediately the word father slipped out of her lips cold wave ran through Aec's skin
Ace nodded curtly, his expression unchanging.
When Diana returned with the coffee, Ace stood up. "I need to go," he said.
But his stepmother wasn't having it. "Stay," she said, her voice firm.
Diana intervened again, smiling. "Let him go, Mother. Maybe he's busy."
But his stepmother's grip on Ace's arm was like a vice. "You know what you have, and you know what you'll lose if you don't listen to me," she whispered, her voice dripping with menace.
Ace's expression turned even colder as he jerked his arm free. He turned and walked away without another word.
When he got home, Maxie approached him with a concerned expression. "What's going on, Ace?" she asked. "Why are you holding my girl hostage?"
Ace didn't respond, simply passing her by. "Take her with you when you leave," he said, his voice cold.
Sharon was shocked by the change in him, the entire place silent due to Aec u attending and cold aura. She followed him upstairs to his room, trying to get some answers. "What's going on, Ace?" she asked, her voice shaking. "You've started shutting me out again, haven't you?"
Ace didn't respond, simply staring blankly into space. Sharon's anger flared. "Ace, answer me!" she demanded.
But he just turned to her, his eyes cold. "When I want something, I'll tell you," he said. "Until then, don't bother me."
"Ohh..." Sharon mutter's out of unbelief "what's with them taking me when they leave"
" You don't understand or you are just slow" Aec answer's
" So what about the contract, what happened to the contract that's supposed to be every weekend then"
" Aeccccc..." She calls his name
"What's going on, Ace?" Sharon asked, her voice shaking with anger.
Ace didn't respond, simply staring at her with a cold, unyielding gaze.
"Answer me!" Sharon demanded, her voice rising. "What's going on with you? You're like a different person."
Ace's expression didn't change, but his eyes seemed to flash with a hint of anger. "I'm fine," he said finally, his voice cold.
"You're not fine," Sharon said, her voice bitter. "You're distant, you're cold...you're like you're not even here."
Ace shrugged, his expression unchanging. "I'm just busy, that's all."
"Busy?" Sharon repeated, her voice incredulous. "Busy enough to ignore me? Busy enough to push me away now?"
Ace's gaze didn't waver, but his eyes seemed to chill even further. "I don't have time for this, Sharon," he said. "I have things to take care of."
"Things?" Sharon repeated, her voice rising. "What things? You didn't know you had thing to take care of before you insisted I spend the weekend earlier " Sharon rants
Ace's expression didn't change, but his voice took on a slightly sharper tone. "Don't make this about you, Sharon," he said. "This isn't about you."
Sharon's eyes widened in hurt. "Oh, so now I'm just being selfish?" she asked, her voice trembling. "I'm just being selfish to care about you, to want to know what's going on with you?"
Ace's gaze didn't waver, his expression unyielding. "You're reading too much into this, Sharon," he said. "It's just business as usual."
Sharon's face twisted in anger. "Business as usual?" she repeated. "You call this business as usual?"
Ace's voice took on a cold, detached tone. "I expect you to do what I tell you to do," he said. "That's what you're being paid for, after all."
Sharon's eyes flashed with anger. "Paid?" she repeated, her voice icy. "You think I'm just some kind of employee to you? Some kind of servant?"
Ace's expression didn't change, but his eyes seemed to glint with a hint of warning. "You're not just an employee, Sharon," he said. "You're a contract. And you'd do well to remember that."
Sharon's face twisted in anger and hurt. "I remember," she said, her voice bitter. "I remember that I'm just a contract to you. A contract that can be terminated at any time."
Ace's gaze didn't waver, his expression unyielding. "That's right," he said. "You'd do well to remember that."
"Obey what I tell you Sharon" his voice now mixed with anger and hatred
Sharon's anger boiled over. "I'm not your slave or your servant," she snapped. "You don't tell me what to do."
With that, she stormed out of the room, leaving Ace alone with his thoughts.