Ryan''s temper red up in an instant. "Yeah, so what if I bullied him? What''s it to you? I asked you to cook for me, and you t-out refused. You''ve been MIA for ages and dodging my calls. Are you nning to cut ties with us? If you decided you don''t want me as your brother, why should I listen to you then?!"


    Ryan ended with a touch of bitterness in his voice. He snatched his headphones, jammed them on, and gestured to his crew. "Why''d you stop? Keep at it. Teach him a lesson."


    ra noticed the young guy already had a face full of bruises. He nced at her briefly, didn''t ask for help, and just remained silent as ever. ra rushed over, pushing the attackers aside. "Enough, all of you."


    The group sensed something unusual between ra and Ryan, and quickly turned to Ryan for direction. Ryan was young but had an unexpected authority about him. "ra, are you siding with the outsider now?"


    ra stood protectively in front of the young man, her expression turning even colder. "Ryan, you''re in college now. Do you think it''s okay to hurt people like this? Without the Bradford family name, what do you have?"


    Plus, those friends of his didn''t seem like the best crowd, yet Ryan chose to hang with them.


    Ryan''s cheeks flushed with frustration. Watching ra defend someone he couldn''t stand felt like a punch in the gut, a betrayal.


    He looked beyond ra, his lips quivering with anger. After a long pause, he spun on his heel. "Fine, ra! I won''t bother with you anymore. This guy you''re


    protecting might as well be your real brother. I''m clearly just some stranger to you. Great, don''te back home then."


    As he stormed off, his entourage, now without a leader, hurried to keep up. ra finally turned her attention to the quiet young man. He seemed so professional earlier when he had shown her the car, but now he avoided her gaze, likely feeling awkward about her connection to Ryan.


    "If I buy this car, you''ll get amission, right?" she asked.


    "Yes," he replied.


    "No need for a test drive. I''ll pay right now."


    This was the first car he''d sold. The dealership offered great perks, but he knew why-it was mainly to amodate Ryan who often came to hassle him.


    The Bradford family was loaded, and the guys hanging around Ryan, while not part of the elite circles, were seen as middle-ss with a few small businesses to their names. They were eager to win Ryan over, hoping to connect with the Bradford family.


    Ryan returned home with a fresh p mark on his cheek.


    Quinn looked surprised. "Ryan, what happened to your face?"


    He plopped into a nearby chair, making sure to speak loudly. "ra hit me."


    Naomi, who was watering the nts, heard this and angrily put down the watering can. "Is she out of her mind? Is there no one who can rein her in now?"


    Quinn''s eyes gleamed with mischief. "Didn''t she used to listen to Ada? Maybe we should have Ada invite her over for a little chat?"


    The Ada she mentioned was Simon''s biological mother.