The Billionaire's Sweet Trouble

04

Sebastian

"Did you have your interview with Sweet Treble?" Mom asked the moment she saw me enter the grand living room of our mansion.

It was Wednesday evening, which marked another classic family dinner with my grandparents, Kristov and Pia Stavrakos, and Gareth and Celine Danes.

All eyes turned to me, waiting for my answer.

Damn, I had to beat around the bush.

The supposed interview with the spinster happened a week ago. I thought it was long forgotten, but now it haunted me.

I couldn't tell her the truth yet—that I didn't succumb to that boring interview. Something told me she would be upset if I did, and that could ruin the family dinner. I had to test the water first.

"Was that really a big deal?" I questioned to save myself from lying. I went to the bar and poured myself a glass of sparkling red wine that everyone was drinking.

"Of course. It's a good way to divert the media's attention away from the princess issue." She took a sip of her wine, leaning closer to Dad, then added, "Anyways, I'm glad you did the interview, Sebastian. Sweet Treble's blog is making an enormous wave in social media right now."

"Oh really? Lucky for her." I sat next to my Grandpa Gareth, who was the most chill of anyone in the room.

"That's not luck, son. She works hard to get on the top." Dad raised his hand briefly. "She's quite impressive. Hardworking and good-natured. Ah—you should know better. You met her in person, right?"

I did not answer, saving myself from lying again. Instead, I sipped my wine slowly and waited for someone to rescue me.

Grandma Pia did.

"Is she the one who interviewed Zion Petrakis recently?" Her eyes gleamed with interest.

Well, she rescued me from answering about the spinster librarian, but she kept the topic burning, drawing interest from everyone.

"Yeah, the same girl," Mom responded. "You know her?"

"Uh-huh. I followed her blog. A very sweet girl, just like her name. She's a farmer's daughter from Dansville," Grandpa Pia answered, drawing attention from everyone.

"Oh, wow. She's really interesting, coming from a humble beginning," Mom agreed.

"She is," Grandma Pia continued. "I read her interview with Zion last night. I learned a lot about him as a man beyond just the young, handsome billionaire."

"I heard she also interviewed with Alessandro Russo."

"That was a week ago. It caught the attention of the press. You know how controversial Alessandro's life is, being connected with the Mafia. Sweet Treble presented her article very well, and she has this kind of magic that keeps me reading her blogs."

"That's passion. It shows in her writing that she's loving what she's doing," Grandpa Kristov butted in. Then he turned to me. "I'm glad she did an interview with you, Seb. She'll definitely make a good article."

"I can't wait to read it. Do you know when it will come out?" Grandma Celine asked me, making everyone's eyes focus on me again.

"I-I don't have an idea." I shrugged and diverted the topic. "Aren't we going to eat yet? I'm starving."

"We're waiting for Luna," Mom answered. "She's still taking a shower. Have some of those first." She pointed at the charcuterie board on a tray cart. "It's still early for dinner."

"Never mind. I'll wait." I swirled my glass of wine, then took a sip.

Everyone looked up at the staircase.