Chapter 117.Each one satisfied-4

Aaina crossed her arms, looking away as her cheeks puffed out slightly in a classic tsundere pout.

“He’s tolerable. For a giant jerk who keeps patting my head like a dog. But… yeah. I guess I do.”

Uncle Joe chuckled, taking a sip of his water. “Good. Now, what about your analysis?”

Instantly, Aaina’s posture straightened. The blushing teenager vanished, replaced by the intense demeanor of a serious spy reporting to her handler.

“Target environment is highly chaotic,” Aaina reported, her voice dropping into a deadpan, professional tone. “The housekeeper, Meha, is wildly illogical but fiercely protective. She possesses high domestic skills but zero threat assessment. She is easily manipulated but a loyal ally.”

Uncle Joe nodded slowly, hiding his amused smile. “And the other guest?”

“Miss Chloe Vane,” Aaina’s eyes narrowed slightly, a distinct, bitter note of jealousy creeping into her ‘professional’ spy voice. “She poses a high-level distraction. She pretends to be a strict authority figure, but her defenses completely crumble around him. He treats her differently.”

Aaina scowled, kicking a loose floorboard. “He gave her all the prime cuts of meat. And he looks at her like… well, they are way too close. It’s annoying.”

Uncle Joe couldn’t hold it in anymore. A warm, rumbling laugh escaped his chest. He looked at his fiercely observant, slightly jealous granddaughter with absolute adoration.

Aaina broke character, tilting her head at him with a mix of curiosity and duty.

“Is there really nothing you want me to do?” she asked, her voice turning earnest. “No missions? No recon?”

“Nothing at all, my dear,” Uncle Joe smiled warmly, setting his glass down on the small table. “You are doing perfectly. You should just keep having fun and eating well. Besides…”

A mischievous, knowing glint flashed in the old man’s eyes.

“…I’m sure you would be more than happy to spend some more time with your ‘father’, wouldn’t you?”

Aaina froze. The memory of her sobbing Daddy! while violently hugging Mylo’s leg flashed behind her eyes.

A violent, boiling red flush completely consumed her face, spreading all the way down to her collarbone.

“I WAS JUST ACTING!” Aaina shrieked, completely losing her composure.

She spun on her heel, stomping furiously down the short hallway.

“You’re both giant jerks!” she yelled over her shoulder.

She darted into her bedroom and slammed the door shut behind her with a loud, echoing BANG.

In the quiet living room, Uncle Joe just shook his head, a bright, happy smile remaining on his weathered face as he started unfolding his mattress for the night.

The apartment was quiet with Mylo and Aaina gone.

Chloe sat at the kitchen island, sipping a warm cup of tea Meha had pressed into her hands.

Meha finished doing house chores and now wiping down the stove, but she didn’t put the towel away. Instead, she leaned across the counter, her expression turning surprisingly serious.

“Miss Chloe,” Meha started, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. “Tell me the truth. What is your actual relationship with the young master?”

Chloe nearly choked on her tea.

“I-what?” Chloe coughed, her cheeks instantly flaring a brilliant pink. “Meha, I am his teacher! I am a Deputy Head at his college! That is it!”

“A student who invites his beautiful teacher over for a private dinner?” Meha raised a highly skeptical eyebrow. “A student who looks at you like you are the only woman in the room?”

“Meha, please!” Chloe stammered, fanning her burning face with her free hand. “It’s not like that! He just needed help buying vegetables!”

Meha hummed, clearly entirely unconvinced.

Desperate to change the subject before she died of embarrassment, Chloe quickly set her teacup down.

“What about you, Meha?” Chloe asked, shifting the focus. “Do you have family back home?”

The playful, dramatic spark in Meha’s eyes vanished.

She straightened up, folding the dish towel slowly. A heavy, grounded seriousness settled over the maid, stripping away the comedic flair and making her look her actual age.

“I do,” Meha said softly. “I have a son. He just turned eight.”

Chloe’s eyes widened in genuine surprise. “Oh! That’s wonderful, Meha. Does your husband look after him while you work?”

Meha flinched slightly.

She looked down at the granite counter, her fingers gripping the folded towel tightly. A flash of deep, guarded pain crossed her face.

“No,” Meha murmured, her voice tight and clipped. “It… it is just me and my boy. I work to support him.”

Chloe instantly realized she had stepped on a landmine.

“Meha, I am so incredibly sorry,” Chloe said quickly, her voice full of gentle, sincere regret. “I shouldn’t have pried.”

“It is quite alright,” Meha forced a small, polite smile, though the shadows lingered in her eyes. “He is my whole world. That is why I need this job.”

A comfortable, empathetic silence fell between them. The chaotic maid and the strict teacher suddenly found a shared ground of quiet understanding.

“That little girl, Aaina,” Chloe said softly, smoothly steering the conversation to safer waters. “She reminds me a bit of my younger sister. An absolute terror.”

Meha’s smile turned genuine. “She is a little demon. But she did eat three pieces of my chicken.”

“She acts so tough and bratty,” Chloe sighed fondly, looking toward the front door. “But I think she’s just incredibly lonely.”

“Living in a place like this with only an elderly grandfather?” Meha nodded in agreement. “Of course she is. She just wants a place to belong. A place to hang out.”

“Well,” Chloe smiled, taking another sip of her tea. “It looks like she found one.”

“We will simply have to keep feeding her,” Meha declared, her maternal instincts fully reignited. “And we must keep the young master in line so he doesn’t corrupt her!”

The lock on the front door clicked loudly.

The heavy door swung open, and Mylo stepped back into the apartment, tossing his keys onto the side table, completely unaware of the motherly alliance that had just solidified in his kitchen.

“Are you two plotting my downfall again?” Mylo asked, leaning casually against the kitchen doorframe.

Chloe jumped slightly, pulling her hands away from her teacup.

“We are simply discussing how to keep your feral tendencies in check, Mr. Mylo,” Meha replied without missing a beat. She untied her apron with a dramatic flourish. “And making sure poor Aaina is properly fed next time.”

“I fed her,” Mylo defended, walking into the kitchen. “I gave her the carrots.”

“Which is practically child abuse,” Chloe teased, a comfortable, relaxed smile playing on her lips.

“See? The alliance is already forming against me,” Mylo chuckled, shaking his head.

Meha neatly folded her apron and checked the wall clock. It was pushing closer to nine.

“Well, my duties here are complete,” Meha announced, smoothing her skirt. “The kitchen is clean, the master is fed, and the guest is unharmed. I will take my leave for the night.”

“Thank you, Meha,” Chloe said, standing up. “The food was wonderful.”

“Have a good night, Meha,” Mylo added.

“Tata! Behave yourself, Mr. Mylo!” Meha pointed two stern fingers at his eyes, then at her own, before bustling out the front door.

Click.

The heavy lock slid into place.

The sudden silence in the apartment was deafening.

Without Meha’s chaotic energy or Aaina’s loud complaints, the atmosphere in the room shifted entirely. The bright, domestic warmth suddenly condensed into something much heavier. Much more intimate.

It was just the two of them. Alone. In a quiet, locked apartment at nine o’clock at night.