Lately, every compliment Paulina tossed Hugh’s way turned into another jab at Myles and Aron for being hopeless in winning women’s attention. The thought chilled Aron. If Myles ended up being transferred elsewhere for punishment, he’d be the only one left for Paulina to scold. There would be no one to share the misery with.

And Hugh’s smug glow didn’t help. Ever since he started dating Heather, he’d been eating like he was training for a competitive buffet. His face was getting rounder by the day.

Aron couldn’t imagine how Hugh was supposed to protect Cole when he could barely keep his shirt from bursting at the seams.

Just as both Myles and Aron were tearing Hugh to pieces in their minds, Cole stormed into the room with a look sharp enough to slice through steel.

Myles went rigid. One glance at that stormy expression told him everything. Whatever hope he had pinned on that second application had collapsed. Elliana had probably laughed Cole straight out of the room. He was doomed.

The weight of it held Myles frozen, though Paulina, Aron, and Hugh scrambled upright at once.

“Good morning, Mr. Evans,” said Paulina and Aron together, their voices tight with respect.

Hugh, floating through life without a care, didn’t bother with formality. He bounded toward Cole, waving a half-eaten donut like it was a peace offering. “Are you hungry? These donuts are insane. You have to try one!”

Myles and Aron recoiled at the sight. How could anyone be this clueless?

Mortified, Paulina rushed forward and grabbed Hugh’s arm, trying to haul him back before he dug the hole any deeper.

Cole’s eyes traveled over Hugh, assessing him from head to toe before a sudden laugh escaped his lips. There was no joy in the sound; it was filled with pure disbelief. Hugh was practically morphing into a pig right before his eyes—without a doubt the heaviest bodyguard in the Evans family’s history. With his round, greasy face, he wouldn’t just be useless if trouble started—he might even make things worse.

? : g

Hugh, however, didn’t think much of Cole’s laughter at all. Seeing Cole smile made him grin even wider, and a silly “Hehe!” slipped out.

With renewed excitement, Hugh pushed the donut toward Cole once more. “Go on, take one! Heather and I are tying the knot soon, and these donuts are bursting with good fortune. One bite, and all your dreams will start coming true. You’ll be surrounded by blessings in no time!”

Those words struck Cole right where he was most vulnerable. He cast a look at Hugh, who seemed to shine with the unmistakable glow of someone freshly in love. He couldn’t help but acknowledge the almost magnetic sense of luck surrounding Hugh, a kind of charm he felt painfully absent from his own life right now.

Without even trying, Hugh had managed to win Heather over. She adored him even as he grew heavier every day. The guy really was blessed.

Cole figured if he could borrow just a sliver of that luck, maybe things with Elliana would smooth out sooner than he hoped. That thought made him reach out, take the donut from Hugh, and take a bite, deliberate and slow.

Paulina, Myles, and Aron all stared in shock. Cole was famously picky and strict about what he ate. When had he ever touched something like a donut? And as for his obsession with cleanliness, no one could believe he’d actually eat something Hugh had just handed over.

.

.

.