It was morning; Sosuke woke up at 5 am. He would wake up later during the weekends but couldn't sleep. He couldn't stop thinking about the kiss and what his Aunt Amelia said. "If you don't tell her how you feel, someone else might take her." His Aunt's words made an impact on him. He sighed as he lay on the bed, looking at the ceiling. Sosuke admitted that he liked Esmeralda but knew his heart felt more.

Sosuke immediately sat up, massaging his head roughly. "What am I thinking!? Why can't I stop thinking about it!?" The young man realized he could not stop thinking about Esmeralda unless he told her what he felt about her. His heart skipped a beat. "I need a run."

Sosuke dressed in shorts and a plain blue shirt. His hair was still messy. Luckily, his Uncle's backyard was massive. His Uncle Bradley, like his other brothers, was wealthy and could afford big houses. However, some decided to get decent-sized places. Sosuke began to run around the backyard. It relaxed him, but Sosuke knew he would still deal with the same issue. About an hour later, he went back to his room and showered.

Afterward, Sosuke dressed in black khakis and a short-sleeved dark blue shirt. He decided not to slick his hair back. Sosuke would get tired of trying to look presentable. Women always seemed to be attracted to him, dressing his best and not with his usual self. Sosuke was about to go and make breakfast for the rest of the family, but from the outside, he heard singing.

It was Esmeralda. Sosuke walked out to the balcony; he saw her sitting by the pool. She was playing the harp that belonged to Amelia.

She played the harp very well as she sang. "Esmeralda."

The young woman stopped in her tracks and looked at where Sosuke was. She let out a smile with a slight blush on her cheeks. "Good morning, Sosuke. Sorry did I wake you?"

"Not at all. I had a little run; I was about to make breakfast."

"I was too." Esmeralda went inside. Sosuke noticed that she was avoiding eye contact with him. He knew what he had to do and went downstairs. Sosuke was about to help, but Esmeralda shook her head. "I'll make breakfast. You and your family are doing so much for me that this is the least I can do. Please. I also want to cook a little traditional breakfast."

Sosuke sighed and let her do what she wanted. The two were silent; Sosuke's heart was beating rapidly. "Esmeralda, about the kiss."

"Sosuke, it's alright; there's no need to explain.

"I do. What I said was wrong. You went through something traumatic, and I feel I did it wrong. I-" Sosuke realized that he sounded wrong. "Sorry, I'm not good at these things. It's just that, well, I..." He felt his body getting warm.

Esmeralda looked at Sosuke. "Maybe you should go sit down. You look sick."

The young man composed himself. He was struggling to speak. "Damn it! To hell with it!" he thought. "What I'm trying to say is that I liked the kiss! I'm happy I did it!" He breathed heavily.

Esmeralda stopped what she was doing; her eyes never left Sosuke. She slowly walked towards him and stopped when she got in front of him. "I'm glad." Esmeralda gently grabbed his face and motioned him closer to her. The young woman kissed him.

Sosuke was shocked, but her lips felt so warm. He kissed her back. Moments later, they separated from the kiss; they looked at one another. "I thought the kiss meant nothing to you," she said.

"I'm a man of action, not words. I find it difficult to express myself, Esmeralda."

"Oh, young love."

The two flinched and saw who was standing by the kitchen entrance. Bradley was by the wall with his arms crossed, an amused smile on his lips. The young couple blushed. "M-Mr. Bradley! We, uh!"

"Oh, don't worry. There's nothing to be embarrassed about. I wondered how long it would take for you both to admit your feelings to one another. I guess my nephew here follows my philosophy." Bradley looked at his nephew. "Anyway, after breakfast, we have many things to discuss. Now go on with your love session, don't let a nosy old man stop you."

The couple blushed even more.

...................................

Yhwach took a sip from his tea as he looked at his guest. His injuries were beginning to heal, though slowly. "I'm glad you made it here in one piece, my dear. I hope your trip was to your liking. Loly, was it?"

Loly looked around Yhwach's home. She was very impressed with his home. "He has bank. He's probably richer than Sosuke," she thought. "Very, it's not every day I can ride a private plane to get here. So, you want me to get Sosuke from our previous talks?"

"Indeed, my dear. I know that you and Sosuke have a history with one another."

"Yeah, he ignored my calls and broke up with me. You say it's because of another woman?"

Yhwach nodded.

"Let me guess; you want this woman yourself? You're using me to separate the two?"

"Very observant for you, my dear. However, your work won't go in vain. I will pay you if you get the two away from each other. Meanwhile, you will stay in one of my condos during your stay."

Loly smirked. "Of course, I will accept the job. Either way, Sosuke and I have unfinished business. He can't deny that I have skill in bed." She slowly stood from her seat and walked to Yhwach. Loly then knelt between his legs.

Yhwach smirked. "Do you now?"

She then began to unbuckle and unbutton his pants. "I can show you. I think you and I will get along pretty well." Loly freed his cock; she had to admit that Yhwach had an impressive size. She began to stroke it until he became erect; she began to suck on him.

Yhwach, on the other hand, watched and let Loly please him. He wasn't surprised that she would act this way. To him, she wasn't different from the other women he screwed. Like other women, Loly would do anything to gain more power and influence. What Loly didn't know was that she had another purpose. True, he wanted to put Loly between Sosuke and Esmeralda but knew that plan could be a downfall. However, he did have a plan B.

Loly would be the sacrificial pawn. For now, he would enjoy the fruits of his plan. He began to breathe heavily as he felt Loly sucking on him slowly. However, he imagined it was Esmeralda giving him the pleasure. He knew he had to be patient, but it was getting difficult, so he had spies planted inside and outside the family. Yhwach was determined to get what he wanted.

He arched his head back as he was coming close. "Esmeralda..."

.................

Esmeralda and Sosuke sat beside one another during breakfast; Amelia and Bradley sat on the other side. Bradley told Amelia what happened; the elders happily teased the young couple. "So, are you two a couple now?" asked Amelia.

"Uh, well..."

"We're going slow, Auntie. We both want to see what it will lead to," Sosuke answered.

Bradley rolled his eyes. "You young generations take everything slowly. I don't know why you hesitate to be in a relationship when it clearly shows that you like each other."

Esmeralda blushed even more while Sosuke glared at his Uncle.

"M-Mr. Bradley, I wanted to know about the situation with my papa. I'm worried about him."

"Ah, yes. I was going to speak with him and bring him here, but I asked my nephew Adrian and my son Roy to go after what happened. They will inform me of the situation. Your father might arrive in a couple of days."

The young woman sighed. "My papa is a stubborn man, Mr. Bradley. He's going to want to know what's going on. If I have been gone for a while, he knows something wrong. When something goes wrong, I get a long lecture."

Bradley and Sosuke chuckled. "I can imagine but don't worry, my son and nephew are smooth talkers. My brothers and I work in business; we have worked with many difficult people. If your father needs some convincing, then you will be contacted."

The young woman let out a sigh of relief. Deep down, she was afraid of how her father would react. He was stern and strict, but she knew he only cared for her best interest. She knew that her father would want to know the truth. Her thoughts were interrupted when there was a knock on the door.

Sosuke immediately stood and opened the door; Ace, Gol D, Vlad, and Issa entered the house. "Good morning, cousin. Finished eating breakfast?" asked Ace as he patted Sosuke on the shoulders.

"Of course."

"Where's Esme?"

"Good morning, Ace." Esmeralda smiled as she went to hug Ace; he hugged her back. All watched as everything was happening; Sosuke was silent. He knew Esmeralda was kind by heart, but he didn't like seeing her hug Ace. Sosuke hated to admit it, but he was a little jealous.

Ace and Esmeralda separated from their hug. The young woman then went to shake the rest of the men's hands to greet them.

"It has been a long time, Esmeralda. Beautiful as ever," said Issa as he smiled.

She blushed. "Thank you, Mr. Issa. How is your family?'

"They're doing very well. Kahlua can't stop talking about your dancing; even she wants to learn."

"I can show her a thing or two. Maybe one day we can meet."

Issa smiled. "Of course, I will text you her number. It would be nice for you all to be friends."

Bradley and Amelia joined the rest. "Hello, brothers, Ace. Glad you all could make it. Metztli, please be with my wife; my brothers, nephews, and I have things to discuss."

Esmeralda was surprised; she thought she would be part of the conversation. However, she knew it was best not to argue with someone like Bradley. Amelia motioned out her right hand. "Come along; it's best not to be part of men's conversations. Besides, we can do some crafts, and I can tell you more about my dating experiences with Bradley!"

Bradley cleared his throat as the two women went upstairs to Amelia's small quarters, leaving the men alone. Bradley then led his nephews and brothers to his study. Two sofas and a couple of chairs were available; they got situated.

The brothers were quiet until Gol D. spoke up. "Ace told me what happened; I'm sure we all know. Bradley, this is getting out of hand. We would have never thought that Yhwach would try to take advantage of that poor young lady." Gol D clenched his hands into fists. "Yhwach is sick in the head."

Vlad crossed his arms as he sat on a chair. "What did you expect, brother? Yhwach grew up in a toxic environment; he was abused by our father immensely. His mother was no better either. We were lucky."

Ace glared at his Uncle Vlad. "Are ya justifying his actions, Uncle Vlad?"

"No, I agree that what he did was horrific and inexcusable, but his environment had something to do with his upbringing and current character. I know you see it as an excuse, Ace, but Yhwach has been through so much. I feel there is more we don't know about," explained Vlad.

Issa rolled his eyes. "You have always been the bloody heart, Vlad."

"You've always been spoiled, Issa. Look at the predicaments you went through with your current and ex-wife."

Issa and Vlad glared at one another.

"That's enough, both of you. We can all agree that  Esmeralda is not safe. Yhwach will not rest until she is in his possession," stated Bradley.

Sosuke stood silently apart from his uncles and cousin. He looked calm and collected, but his stomach turned in pain when he heard his Uncle Bradley speak those words. "Yhwach will not rest until she is in his possession." The mere thought of Esmeralda being in Yhwach's arms made him angry. In Sosuke's view, Yhwach only desires her for innocence and beauty; he needs to control every aspect of her. It almost terrified him what lengths Yhwach would go to get Esmeralda. 

"What can we do, Bradley? Yhwach will eventually strike, but we don't know what and how. I know the young lady won't be safe forever," said Gol D.

Ace glared at his father. "If Esme stays with us, she will be safe. That bastard tried to rape her; we can go to the police and-"

"Ace!" Gol D gave his son a stern and warning glare. "You think the police will do anything about it? Yhwach can sweep this under the rug. Don't underestimate Yhwach; he's much more intelligent and sinister than you can imagine, just like our father."

All the brothers were silent when their father was mentioned. The brothers didn't like to talk about their father after what he did to their mother. However, the brothers had fond memories of Alucard when they were children. Alucard would play with them, teach them languages, take them to the park, etc. They also remembered how happy Alucard was with their mother, Integra. However, after their mother's murder, they never saw their father again or in the same way.

Alucard betrayed Integra's trust and also Yhwach's.

Bradley shook his head as he cleared his throat. "Anyway, we have to think of ways to keep Esmeralda safe. I thought she would stay with us for a few days until we found out what Yhwach was planning. At the moment, I sent Roy and Adrian to go and pick up her father. He must be worried about why Esmeralda hasn't been in contact, and I don't want him to get the wrong idea."

"Do you think that's a good idea?" asked Issa.

"We always have to assume the worst, Issa. Eventually, Yhwach will find out about her father and might use him to get to her."

"Will Esmeralda's father believe our sons and come willingly?" asked Vlad.

Bradley merely nodded. "He loves and cares for his daughter deeply. I know he will." As he was about to make another statement, his phone rang. Bradley looked at the caller id; it was his son Roy. He answered and put it on speaker as his brothers and nephew listened. "Roy, did you and Adrian make it to Esmeralda's home?"

"We did, but we have a troubling situation," answered Roy.

The room immediately became tense. "What happened?"

"Esmeralda's father is in the hospital."