Chapter 198: Deals and Conditions.

"Even for a girl you're taking an awfully long time choosing between just three bathing suits, Eve." Dina stood at the entrance of the changing rooms redirecting everyone the men to another and allowing only the women to enter with her. "Is it that you don't like them, should I ask Sara to get another set?" She asked when no reply came.

"No!... No, that's not it; I'm not used to it, the beach is a lot different than some poolside, I dont think I can wear this in public." Eve answered amonges the other chatting women causing almost all of them to look at her.

"Don't tell me..." Dina took off her glasses parting the women like peas in a child's plate and standing before her as she hugged herself after wearing the bikini. "You've never been to the beach before?"

"I live in the city, I never left home before-"

"Now that's a story I never expected to hear with my own ears." One of the women in the changing room chuckled when Dina took the towel from around her waist and wrapped it around Eve.

"I don't mind having my name in orange for a while if it means beating the shit out of you, I hope you think of that before you open your mouth again." Dina looked over her shoulder at the woman who had spoken.

"Not everyone had the privilege of being born the illegitimate daughter of a millionaire." She stared at her, and the woman sucked her teeth and turned, storming out after Dina had struck a nerve.

"... Thanks." Eve smiled embarrassed as she held on to the towem and fixed it around her waist while Dina double-checked the bathing top and then patted her shoulder. Sёarch* The NôᴠelFirё.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"Come on, master's waiting."

"Is he?" Eve asked surprised.

"He said he would wait, and so he will." She took her hand and ushered her out of the building leading her onto the beach.

"It's so beautiful." Eve mused again as soon as the vastness of the ocean graced her eyes, not a cloud in sight just vibrant skies and shimmering waters with white sand and a healthy amount of sunlight that surprisingly didn't burn, causing the beach to have people from one side to the next properly dispersed where nobody was in anyone else's way.

"Over here." Dina took her by her hand and led her across several groups waving to someone who quickly perked up when they saw her.

"Finally, you were taking forever." Usami approached first and stood before them brushing her fingers through Dina's let-down hair and then looking at Eve. "And you must be the plus-one."

"Eve." She answered taking Usami's hand nervously. "I-It's a pleasure to meet you, miss... I mean, Lady Ikaris..." She greeted her and Usami took a few seconds to let what she heard soak in before realisation hit her and she looked at Dina, resulting in the two of them erupting in laughter and hugging each other for support.

"Did I say something wrong?"

"Absolutely." Dina let go of Usami and took Eve by her chin turning her head towards a crowd of children almost thirty strong and growing beneath a tree. "Ikaris is over there." She pointed. "As is Master, so come on." She began leading her by her shoulders.

"Are they giving away free candy or something, where did all these kids come from?" Eve asked, intimidated by the sheer amount of kids going to and from the tree.

"She has a charm that attracts the little ones, they both do." Arla seemingly from nowhere joined Dina's side along with Sara, greeting her by pressing their foreheads together, resulting in Eve staring at them skeptically while Usami parted the kids and let them through.

Sitting by the base of the tree on a table was Ikaris and Sol, Ikaris with a little girl sitting on her leg and Sol with a little boy hung ober his shoulder and laughing as he rocked from side to side.

"Dina!" Ikaris looked up with a bright smile as soon as she saw them, and Eve seeing this smile felt a bed of flowers bloom across her heart and stomach as Ikaris looked at her as well. "You came straight here after your flight?" She asked and Dina nodded and slightly pushed Eve forward.

"Go on, greet her."

"Wh..." Eve stumbled forward and stopped before Ikaris unable to look away while Ikaris smiled at her. "Oh god." She stared until her eyes started tearing up.

"Breathe, Eve." Dina pat her back, and the girl took a deep breath and blinked several times, shakily raising her hand and taking Ikaris's outstretched arm.

"You're... an angel." Eve commented her first words blushing brightly as she could swear she was seeing light come from the woman before her, and Sol chuckled in reaction from his seat on the table, standing and placing the child on the ground as he approached and held out his hand to her.

"Eve, it's nice seeing you again." Sol took her hand as she looked from Ikaris up at him and her jaw slackened at his smile as well.

"Oh my god, you're beautiful too." Eve stared causing Sol to clear his throat and regard her respectfully, releasing his hand from her grasp and looking at Dina who gave him a glance asking him to exercise patience for her sake.

"Dina said you wanted to meet me, and I know it might have been a bit sudden and overwhelming but here we are, face to face as you requested."

"Yes, right." Eve nodded and looked away from them, and then averted her eyes from Arla when their paths crossed. "You're all beautiful, what the hell..." She mused and then looked at Sol again.

"I know what I want for my reward now, but I ended up coming here because I wanted to see if meeting someone like you face-to-face was possible, I'd rather be rejected to my face than over a call or email." Eve stared at him and saw the amusement rising in his eyes.

"Okay, it was possible and I'm here before you, whether I reject your request depends on what you're asking of me." Sol smiled at her and then looked at Dina with a curious and impressed smile. "Friend?"

"Yes, friend." Dina answered, and Arla bumped her with her elbow.

"This girl has more courage than anyone else I have ever seen, if she had any clue who she was talking to she would probably shit herself, haha." Arla chuckled with Dina, but her humour was left hanging when Dina looked back at her and shook her head, making her realise she was serious.

"Dina is seriously considering a friendship with you..." Sol watched what happened between Dina and Arla and then looked at Eve again. "I'm convinced."

He gestured that she follow him outside of everyone else's earshot under the guise of a more private conversation.

"If Dina has seen a friend in you then I'll give you my full support in whatever you want or need, she even spent out of her own pocket to get you here, so name it, no matter how absurd the request as long as it doesn't cross the boundaries of common sense or life and death, or compromise me and my family in any serious way I'll grant it.

"She's the one that paid for my trip?"

"Of course, Dina is filthy rich all on her own, did you think I was her sugar daddy or something?" Sol Chuckled and watched Eve muse over that fact for a few seconds.

"It's nothing that serious, I know you own Area 10.B, and the housing there is supposed to be cheap-"

"You can move in with your family whenever you're ready." Sol smiled at her, taking a seat around another table beneath another tree while she stood there flabbergasted. "I'll even find a house close to ours so you and Dina can meet easier, is there anything else?"

"My father-"

"-Has been struggling to get a stable paying job, if you move into 10.B I'll personally find him something suiting his skills within the week, he'll be able to comfortably afford his housing fees by the end of the first month, and your mom's a stay-at-home just like Ikaris, they might end up becoming friends too she's a bit of an introvert though." Sol cut her off again, meeting and surpassing her demand's expectations.

"Anything else?"

"Gosh he's overwhelming her again." Dina sat next to Ikaris with her head rested on her shoulder and he arm locked with Ikaris's while the goddess hummed and played with the small kids who surrounded her. "What if he scares her off, it wasn't easy finding her, everyone else I've observed has only wanted my friendship to of convenience in secret or wanted me..." She deadpanned.

"...My tuition and student loans." Eve lowered her head.

"Okay, that one's conditional." Sol crossed her arms and hummed in thought thinking she had been given two blessings so the last one should be something she earns.

"Conditional how?" Eve asked, thinking for a moment that Sol was going to offer that she become his woman sings it was apparent that Ikaris was his wife and he was still in a relationship with Dina and Arla, one he didn't even hide from his wife, what was one more girl?

Sol saw the expectation on her face and sighed, shutting her down with a shake of his head.

"Before you get the wrong idea, Dina and Arla aren't just random women I aplroached out of some insatiable lust, I'm not interesting in something as disrespectful to my wife as a harem I won't even consider it, we're a family, my condition has nothing to do with you giving yourself to me or any degeneracy like that; you are Dina's friend, so I am giving you the familial treatment and the benefit of a doubt I believe you deserve as someone who has earned her friendship."

"Oof." Dina winced at the tactical shut-down seeing Ikaris smile and look over at them.

"I will personally pay off all of your loans and get you the highest paying job in whatever field of work you desire right out of college, but my condition is that you have to pass top of your classes, lucky for you none of them cross Dina's path because I don't think there's a person out there who's capable of besting her, she's future valedictorian, but I want you to prove that you deserve everything you've asked for by becoming an asset to me and not a liability."

"Wow, that's unexpectedly... Good." Usami who was also listening in to their conversation hummed, holding on to the large sweater Arla wore over her bathing suit to keep the male gaze off herself so ve it was inevitable that she gets tonnes of stares if she openly wore anything too revealing.

"Top of the board in everything you do, and don't worry, your parents won't be affected by anything you do, what I'm doing for them is independent of your success or failure, I won't hold it against you, and I'll still help you out in the future regardless of you meeting my expectations, however, if you succeed you'll be free and earning within the first month of graduating, or whenever you please." Sol smiled and extended his hand across the beach table.

"Is that good enough?"

"Yes, this is far more than I was expecting." Eve extended her hand across the table and took his on a firm shake. "As long as you keep your word."

"Then we have a deal, Eve."