That evening, everyone gradually arrived.
Fortunately, Mia Grant’s spacious off-campus apartment had plenty of rooms.
Although there were only four bedrooms, the study could be used as one too.
Mia Grant didn’t plan an extravagant dinner for tonight. The main event was tomorrow evening.
After dinner, there was still some free time before Serena Grant’s birthday at midnight.
The group decided to go downstairs for a walk to help digest their meal.
The procession was so impressive that from a distance, they looked like a boy band out on the town.
Mia Grant was sandwiched in the middle, feeling small and helpless, but blissful.
There was a small park right downstairs, with a children’s slide that Mia Grant was very fond of.
Since there weren’t many children in their neighborhood, kids rarely played on the slide, making Mia Grant its most frequent visitor.
But for some reason, perhaps because the children were on vacation, the slide had been reclaimed by them tonight.
The kids’ area was filled with laughter and cheerful voices.
Mia Grant glanced over from a distance and sighed to herself.
Kian Keller followed her gaze but didn’t say anything.
As they strolled through the park, the group was far too conspicuous. They soon attracted the attention of an enthusiastic older woman by the roadside.
She insisted on introducing them to potential girlfriends.
Mia Grant leaned against a nearby surface, silently enjoying the show.
Ian Sinclair wasn’t one to be polite even to rude elders in his own family, let alone a complete stranger. He quickly extricated himself and slipped over to Mia Grant’s side.
Seeing the amused look on her face as she enjoyed the drama, he flicked her on the forehead and muttered in discontent, "You could have at least helped. I was this close to being set up on a blind date."
"If I hadn’t been quick, she would’ve gotten my number."
Mia Grant burst out laughing. "She was just being friendly. Why would I get in her way?"
Ian Sinclair gave her a wounded look. "So you really don’t care at all, do you? Didn’t you see? Hayes Hughes is getting all the attention."
Mia Grant followed his gaze and saw that the older woman was indeed gripping Hayes Hughes’s arm tightly, as if afraid he would run off.
"But why?" Mia Grant tilted her head, confused.
Ian Sinclair could tell she wasn’t jealous, just genuinely curious, which made him feel much better.
’At least she treats everyone the same and doesn’t play favorites.’
Mia Grant genuinely didn’t get it. Logically, aside from the two from the Sinclair family who were still students, the rest of them could all be considered successful men.
So why was the woman so partial to Hayes Hughes?
"Because he’s a doctor," Ian Sinclair explained.
"Huh?" Mia Grant looked at him, not getting it.
"A stable job is always a good thing. They’re a hot commodity on the matchmaking market. Plus, you can tell just by looking at Hayes that he has a good personality."
It suddenly dawned on Mia Grant.
’That makes sense.’
Kian Keller didn’t take part in the farce. He pushed Yates Donovan in front of him, smoothly retreating from the "battlefield" to make a phone call off to the side.
He came back to find Mia Grant two minutes later.
"Was that a work call?" Mia Grant had seen him on the phone and was worried he might have to leave.
"No." He was a man of few words, but he explained anyway. "I was telling them to clear an empty space at my house."
Mia Grant knew "house" referred to his modern-style courtyard home.
The one where he’d previously "imprisoned" her.
"What for?" Mia Grant asked casually.
"To put in a slide."
"?" Mia Grant’s eyes widened.
Mia Grant thought he was kidding, but the very next day, she received design plans from an architect.
Later, Kian Keller really did install two slides in his backyard.
At first, the butler thought wedding bells were on the horizon and that Kian Keller was planning to build a children’s playground. He only realized later that it was exclusively for Mia Grant.
After one lap around the park, they decided to head back, mainly worried about encountering another "enthusiastic citizen."
As they waved goodbye to the woman, her eyes lit up at the sight of Mia Grant. "Oh my, what a pretty young lady! How old are you?"
Mia Grant noticed the expressions of the men beside her darken instantly.
Her eyes crinkled as she smiled. "Twenty."
"Still in school? Which one?" the woman asked, grabbing her hand with gleaming eyes.
"Bei—"
Before she could answer, someone forcibly pulled her hand from the woman’s grasp.
Just by the look of the hand, Mia Grant knew it was Silas Grant.
The woman wasn’t the least bit embarrassed. "Are these all your brothers?" she asked.
"You all have such good genes in your family."
Just as Mia Grant was about to nod, a voice from behind, practically begging for a punch, cut in. "Not me. I’m her fiancé."
Yates Donovan’s declaration quickly earned him several displeased glares.
But since he’d already said it, there was no good way to correct him.
They had no choice but to let him get away with it.
Seeing them fuming but holding their tongues, Mia Grant rubbed her nose sheepishly and tried to shrink into the background.
Once the woman heard they were engaged, she had no choice but to give up. Before leaving, she still gave Mia Grant a reluctant look.
Mia Grant was about to offer the woman a smile, but Yates Donovan, with his quick reflexes, slung an arm around her shoulders and hustled her away from the scene.
"You dare smile again!" Yates Donovan pinched her cheek. "Smile one more time and she’ll be right back here asking for your number."
"Is it really that serious?" Mia Grant laughed, completely carefree.
"She knows I’m taken. She won’t ask again."
"Don’t underestimate the power of those women, and don’t underestimate the power of that face of yours."
Mia Grant pouted, offering no comment.
"Those guys are enough trouble as it is. Don’t you go attracting any more eyesores."
Yates Donovan never bothered to lower his voice when he complained, and it was hard to tell if it was intentional or not.
The words immediately earned him a cold glare from Kian Keller.
However, Kian didn’t say anything. Knowing him, Mia figured he probably agreed with Yates Donovan’s sentiment.
Mia Grant quickly raised her hands in surrender. "You guys are already a handful; I can barely keep up as it is. There won’t be anyone else."
Satisfied, Yates Donovan hugged her tightly, clinging to her like a koala with his arms wrapped around her.
"Ow," Mia Grant said, patting his hand. "It’s hard to walk like this."
"That’s the point. Some guy was staring at you just now."
’Ah, I get it. He’s staking his claim.’
Mia Grant was speechless.
Back at the apartment, everyone got busy with their own things.
They were all busy people with backlogs of work to handle.
This was Ian Sinclair’s favorite time of day.
Even with so many people around, he could still have Mia Grant all to himself.
The others could be as jealous as they wanted; there was nothing they could do.
The two of them watched TV in the living room, chatting about Mia Grant’s plans to study abroad.
When Ian Sinclair mentioned that the house abroad was almost done with renovations, Mia Grant couldn’t help but laugh.
"I’m not even sure I’ll get in."
"As if I don’t know you," Ian Sinclair scoffed. "Once you set a goal, you always achieve it."
Mia Grant raised an eyebrow but didn’t argue the point.
The pendulum of the wall clock swung back and forth. Mia Grant kept stealing glances at it, her thoughts drifting as time ticked by. She automatically tuned out the TV show and the sound of Ian Sinclair’s voice beside her.
Finally, with a soft click from the clock, a new day arrived.
It was now exactly twelve o’clock at night.
It was Serena Grant’s twentieth birthday.