The kids had already started their dinner because Wade was too impatient and the uncles took a longer time than they had expected.

Today Lina was eating a bowl of salad with a side dish that contained a plate full of fried chicken.

'I might as well take advantage of this opportunity to have this kind of awesome stuff because Mrs. Ping monitors my meals every day.' She relished the chicken and washed it down with orange soda.

"You want to put on weight again?" Wade taunted her and she growled at him.

"Yea… I can see those flabby arms again!" Wayne chimed in as he pinched her arms.

"No, I do not!" Lina yelled and pulled her hand away from him.

'But it would be better to start exercising just to be on the safer side!' She convinced herself.

"Nana will still be cute even if she puts on some weight." They heard Patrick's voice from behind and they turned to look at him.

'Things must have gotten intense, he even changed his clothes!' Lina grinned at him when she noticed that he had changed into a pale yellow PJ with cutesie blue umbrellas on them.

It looked like they wore a couple's PJs because Uncle Ace wore a blue PJ with baby ducks on it.

Pat was walking along with Ace and they took their seat at the table.

The three kids sat on one side and the two adults on the other.

The main seat at the table and the one next to it were always left vacant in honor of Wayne and Wade's deceased parents.

Though the twins had asked Wallace to take that seat, he always refused to do so and said that it would be left vacant until one of the twins stepped up to occupy it.

"I am adorable either way!" Lina happily agreed with Pat and everyone laughed looking at her proud face.

--

After dinner, the family sat in the hall and talked about the upcoming auction.

Just like before, Wallace and Patrick sat next to each other on one side and Lina along with the twins sat opposite them.

"I have to find a new date to accompany me to the auction," Wayne grumbled which made everyone roll their eyes.

"What about that woman you wanted to give all my gifts to?" Lina mocked him.

"Oh, she? We broke up." He shrugged and Lina just shook her head.

This behavior of his was nothing new. Everyone in the family was aware that Wayne never dated anyone seriously.

Though Lina did not like how he changed women whenever he pleased, she was still surprised to hear about the number of women lining up just to be with him.

Well who wouldn't, he was the CEO of Luo Industries after all!

But he always informed the women beforehand that he wasn't looking for anything serious so it was their decision whether they wanted to continue dating him or they wanted to call it quits.

'At least he doesn't give those women a false hope of love.' Lina was happy with this sincerity of his.

"Just go and stand on the street, someone will pick you up." Wade taunted him mercilessly.

"Hey!" Wayne whined.

"Enough!" Uncle Ace cut them off and just looked at them, successfully shutting up the two bickering buffoons.

Uncle Ace was just as scary as her mother and Lina too put her finger on her lips to comply with his command.

"I will be attending the auction to show that Luo Industry supports Obsidia." Uncle Ace smiled at her as he informed them about his decision.

Wayne happily nodded, pleased with his decision.

Wallace Luo was the presiding Chairman of Luo Industry and had power over all the major decisions in the company.

"Me too! Yang Group also supports my Nana!" Patrick eagerly followed Wallace's footsteps.

"Sure, also don't forget to randomly bid for a few pieces just to increase their prices." Lina rubbed her palms deviously as she schemed to earn a little extra this way.

"Greedy!" Wade muttered under his breath, but Lina heard him loud and clear.

"Look who's talking!" She sneered at him and looked back at her uncles.

"But I do not think that I want to show my face at the auction. It's too soon for that." She declared which caused an uproar among the others.

"What!? Why?"

"It's your auction! You need to be there to see its success!"

"Why are you still hiding when no one knows you?"

"Have you thought about it carefully before making that decision?"

Wayne, Patrick, Wade, and Wallace spoke up in this order.

'Ever the calm guy, huh?' She smiled at Uncle Ace and nodded.

"Calm down! Let me explain what I meant." She waved her hands and got them to finally shut up.

"I said that I do not want to show my face, I never said that I wouldn't attend the auction." She smirked and rolled her eyes at them.

"I just need an impressive mask and I'll be good to go." She beamed.

Wayne and Patrick nodded to show that they supported her plan.

"That's a shitty idea!" But Wade wasn't all that supportive.

"Is it? Then you are going to hate the fact that you are going to be my date for that night! With a mask!" She announced and wiggled her brows at him.

Wade's frown instantly turned to a sparkling smile when he heard this but the other three men scowled at him.

"Why do you want to go with this useless poker face? I can be a better company when compared to him!" Wayne showed his dissatisfaction with her idea.

"Oh please, I do not want every woman there to shoot poisonous daggers at me!" She shot down his suggestion for her personal safety.

Wade was a better option because no one in the city knew that he was Obsidia's VP thanks to his elusiveness.

"Uncle Ace has to be with his business partners to socialize, so it would be tough to explain my presence with him." She rejected Ace too.

"And Uncle Pat can't be seen with me or any other woman until this scandal with Mandy and Lucille gets sorted out." She explained but then saw everyone's face grimace.

'Shit!' She slowly looked at Uncle Ace and saw how his jaw clenched after he heard those names.

Their gaze met and she gave him an apologetic look. He nodded at her and slowly moved away from Pat's arms.

"Excuse me." He smiled at them and got up from his seat.

Seeing him silently walking towards the back garden, Pat hurriedly wanted to chase after him but Lina stopped him.

"Let me do it." She looked at Pat resolutely and strode in Ace's direction before she even received an answer.

--

Lina looked around once she reached the back garden and saw the back of a lone figure standing under the big oak tree.

She walked towards him and he turned around when he heard her footsteps.

They smiled at each other and Lina stood next to him and plopped herself on the cold grass then she gestured for him to sit down with her.

He complied with her wishes and sat down beside her as they leaned against the tree.

"You know he loves you right?" She asked as she gazed at the starry sky.

"Hmm" Was all she got.

"He would never cheat on you."

"Hmmm"

"Mommy told me about how he chased you." She smiled thinking of the stories that her mother had told her about their youth.

"Hmmm"

"She also told me that she guarantees that Uncle Pat did no such thing with Lucille."

This time all she received was a chuckle.

This caused Lina's patience to crack and she turned and fiercely glared at him.

"So why won't you trust him? Why are you so mad when you know that they never slept together!?" She said with a loud voice, through gritted teeth.

"You wouldn't understand." He answered in a soft voice and this pissed her off.

"How would anyone understand how you feel if you just want to bottle it all up until it eats you alive!" This time she yelled at him in hope that it would get through his thick skull.

Ace finally looked into her eyes and she could see the sadness in them.

"I trust him more than I trust myself!" He uttered each word loud and clear and after he spoke, he hung his head and stared at the grass.

"Then why?" Lina was confused because she had heard from Wade that Uncle Ace refused to talk to Pat when this scandal ignited and even wanted to end their relationship.

He laughed mockingly and he punched the ground.

"Because every time I hear about that scandal it reminds me that if he wasn't with me then he too can have a normal family with some woman. Someone who would bear a child for him. Who will carry on his legacy after him." He spoke with his head lowered and his shoulders trembled ever so slightly.

"But with me, he can't have all those and that kills me! That I cannot give him a complete family!" He pulled at the grass to show his frustration.

Lina could feel the tears welling up in her eyes when she heard about how he felt about this whole situation but she still wanted to show him how wrong his thinking was.

"But Unc-" Lina was just about to speak when she was interrupted.

"Nana"

She looked up and saw Uncle Pat standing just a few feet away from them. They were so lost in their talks that they never noticed him standing there.

He had come here sometime after Lina started yelling at Ace and saw Ace pitifully looking at the grass.

"Give us some privacy." He said with a poker face and looked at Ace who refused to look up at him.

Lina understood that this was something they needed to sort out on their own so she got up and left after patting on Uncle Pat's shoulder.

He smiled at her gesture then looked back at the man still sitting with his head lowered.