Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 318

Chapter 318

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While everyone else settled into the main living room, chatting animatedly and waiting for dinner to arrive, Zoey, Matthew, and I slipped away into Nate’s music room. We brought with us a bottle of red wine from the new organic line that Christian had brought from Verdania. It was a moment I hadn’t realized how much I missed: just the three of us siblings, no spouses, no friends, no filters. Just us.

The room was elegant yet cozy, centered around a glossy black grand piano that dominated the space. I sank into a comfortable leather armchair, watching as Matthew inspected the piano with barely concealed curiosity.

“Nope,” Zoey said immediately, recognizing that look on our brother’s face. “I am not letting you touch that expensive plano and make us rip our ears off voluntarily.”

Matthew laughed, lightly brushing his fingers over the keys without pressing them.

“Hey, I’m a master at this,” he protested with mock offense. “Dad taught me the most classic of all classics on my little farm keyboard when I was just one year old.”

“Old MacDonald Had a Farm?” Zoey teased.

“E-1-E-1-0!” Ichimed in, unable to stop myself.

“Way more classic than that!” Matthew replied solemnly.

Zoey took a sip of wine and made an exaggerated gesture.

“Then play, oh great pianist. Impress us with your extraordinary musical talent.”

Matthew sat down at the piano bench with dramatic seriousness, straightened his posture like he was about to perform at Carnegie Hall, and began to play an over-the-top, absurdly pompous version of “Happy Birthday,” complete with unnecessary flourishes and an almost operatic interpretation.

Zoey and I burst into laughter, the sound echoing through the room in a way that instantly transported me back to our childhood, those moments when Matthew’s antics had us laughing until our stomachs hurt.

“Speaking of our parents…” I began once our laughter faded, suddenly remembering that they knew nothing about what had happened the night before.

“I didn’t tell them anything.” Zoey said quickly, reading my thoughts with that uncanny big-sister intuition.” Since you’re okay now, I figured it was better not to worry them unnecessarily.”

“I completely agree,” I sighed in relief. “Mom can’t get stressed with her hypertension. And Dad would lose his mind and probably try to catch the first flight to London.”

“Oh, she’s far from stressed,” Matthew said casually, still fiddling with the piano keys. “She’s spending New Year’s on a billionaire cruise, living her best life.”

“What?” I asked, nearly spilling my wine. “How do I not know about this?”

“Because I’m the favorite,” Matthew said with a smug grin. “She calls me all the time and tells me everything. While you two are busy with your glamorous lives, I get all the family updates firsthand.”

“You just think you’re the favorite,” I shot back, grabbing a cushion from the nearby sofa and throwing it at him.

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“Zoey, you should be telling me this kind of important gossip!”

Zoey laughed, settling more comfortably into her chair.

“You want gossip?” she asked, her voice dropping into that conspiratorial tone I knew so well. “Guess who’s on the cruise with Mom and Dad.”

“Who?” I asked immediately, fully invested.

“Joseph…” she paused dramatically, then finished, “…and his girlfriend.”

My jaw literally dropped, and a completely unfiltered sound of shock slipped out.

“A girlfriend?” I repeated, incredulous. “How is that even possible? Old man Kensington has a girlfriend? Wait… this isn’t a scam, is it? A man his age with that kind of money… Christian must be a nervous wreck! How did you convince him to let his grandfather out of his sight?”

“Because Christian is thrilled,” Zoey replied, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “And you are not going to believe who Grandpa’s girlfriend is.”

“Just tell me already,” I demanded, leaning forward.

“Lucy.”

>

I rolled the name around in my head for a few seconds, digging through my memory.

“Lucy…” I murmured, and Zoey jumped in before I could ask.

“Lucy. The housekeeper at the villa in Valentia.”

“Oh my God,” I gasped, clapping a hand over my mouth. “After all these years?”

“After all these years,” Zoey confirmed with a huge smile. “Apparently, they finally admitted there was more than just a professional relationship there. Christian said he’d always suspected something, the way Joseph always asked about Lucy during calls, how he insisted she take extra days off, how visibly calmer he was whenever she was around during family visits. And Lucy has always cared for him with a devotion that went way beyond her job description. Christian can barely contain how happy he is for his grandfather.”

Matthew stopped playing the piano and turned toward us.

“It’s incredible how love always finds a way,” he said, wearing a dreamy expression that immediately caught

our attention.

Zoey did not miss her opening.

“Like the path between Longmin and Valentia?” she asked sweetly, blinking at me.

Matthew grabbed the cushion I’d thrown at him earlier and tossed it back, hitting Zoey on the shoulder.

“We’re just friends,” he protested, but the flush creeping up his cheeks gave him away.

“I know that line very well,” I said, laughing.

“That’s exactly what you said about Nate for weeks,” Zoey added, pointing at me. “Seems like ‘just friends’ is

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the Bennett family’s favorite phrase when we’re denying painfully obvious feelings.”

“There is nothing obvious,” Matthew insisted, but his attempt at sounding convincing was completely ruined by the smile he was trying-and failing-to suppress.

“Of course not,” I said dryly. “Totally normal for you and Gwen to arrive at the airport at the exact same time. Her coming from Valentia and you arriving on a mysterious flight from Ascia that never actually existed. Pure coincidence.”

“Exactly. Pure coincidence. Zoey’s the one who didn’t see my flight on the board,” Matthew said defensively.

“Or maybe you spent New Year’s in Valentia and my eyesight is just fine,” Zoey suggested with a wicked grin.

“You two are impossible,” Matthew muttered, though he was clearly enjoying the teasing.

“We’re sisters,” I replied simply. “It’s literally our job to be impossible when it comes to our siblings’ love lives.

The moment was interrupted when Nate appeared in the doorway of the music room, smiling as he took in our family chaos.

“Sorry to interrupt,” he said, “but dinner’s here.”

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