12. Power Play Unfolds

The room fell silent, tension thickening the atmosphere, and Chase met her gaze with furrowed eyebrows, asking, "You want to come? Why?"

"Because..." Jada mumbled as she bit her bottom lip hesitantly, unsure how to word her thoughts correctly.

Finally, she decided, "It's me you guys are going to talk about, right? So why shouldn't I be there?"

His eyelids lower, a frown pulling at the corners of his lips. After a few moments, he raised his eyes to look straight at hers. "No,"

The two stared at each other, neither willing to back down. The tension mounted. Finally, Jada let out a defeated groan, running her fingers through her black curls. "Why don't you want me to go?"

Her question was met with silence, and Chase averted his gaze, his shoulders slumping in defeat. When he looked back up at her, he opened his mouth to speak, hesitated, then closed it again, his jaw clenched tight—a long moment passed before he finally said. "Fine. You can come along."

"Are you afraid I will get cold f