Chapter 4

After returning home, Itzy immediately went up to her room to take a shower. After getting ready, she went down to the kitchen to eat. She paused for a moment at the door when she saw her four bodyguards with her parents. When Gerard Bush noticed his daughter, he immediately asked her to come in and eat with them.

After sitting down, Itzy cleared her throat to get her companions' attention, and when she succeeded, everyone turned to her expectantly.

"Dad, do we really need to eat with these four at the same time?" Itzy asked her father, pointing to the four.

Gerard wiped his mouth with a napkin before responding. "Don't you want them to eat with us? They're a big help to me, so it's only fair that I treat them well."

"The maids and our other guards also help us a lot, but why don't you invite them to eat with us as well?" Itzy asked, her voice showing resistance to the idea of joining the four for a meal.

Xinthy sighed, catching Itzy's attention. "Itzy, these men are not like our other guards. They're your age, and we consider them part of our family."

Itzy leaned back and crossed her arms over her chest. "You just met them, and you're already treating them like family? Did you trust them too much, too soon?" She turned to Jace and rolled her eyes before looking back at her mother. "Didn't you also tell me not to trust anyone?"

Xinthy turned to Gerard, seeking his support in explaining their rationale to Itzy.

"They are skilled, well-mannered, and intelligent, Itzy," Gerard replied.

"But can they be trusted? That's the question I want to know," Itzy quickly responded to her father. "Do you already know their backgrounds well enough to entrust me to them? I don't need much if they can't be trusted."

"We did not make hasty decisions. We conducted a thorough background check before hiring them, and they have been with us for a while. They have proven themselves to be trustworthy and dependable," Gerard said.

Xinthy frowned, no longer looking happy with her daughter's words. The young men were present at the dining table, but when Itzy spoke, it seemed as if they were not there and as if she intended for them to hear what she was saying. Xinthy herself was ashamed of her daughter's behavior at the dining table.

"We were discussing eating together just a moment ago. Why are we suddenly talking about trust, Itzy? What do you want to accomplish?" Xinthy asked, her annoyance evident in her tone.

Itzy swallowed, feeling the weight of Xinthy's annoyance. Despite this, she couldn't help but speak her mind. She wanted to get rid of the four bodyguards, and this was her first step toward achieving that goal. "I just…" But she couldn't continue what she was going to say when Jace spoke up.

"Do you not want us to eat with you, or do you have a deeper reason?" Jace asked, unable to hold back from joining the conversation.

Itzy immediately turned to him, surprised by Jace's sudden participation in the conversation, and raised an eyebrow in response. She had assumed that the four were just her father's puppies and didn't know that her parents had gone to great lengths to find skilled and brave men to serve as her bodyguards. Itzy was also unaware of the four men's abilities.

"Excuse me?" Itzy asked, addressing Jace directly. "Are you talking to me? Is this the well-mannered behavior that Dad was praising?"

"I'm sorry, ma'am Itzyana Bush, but we have the right to speak because you're talking about us," Laszlo said carefully because he might say something bad.

On the other hand, Itzy's head got even hotter in annoyance when Laszlo mentioned her full name. Linus was holding back his laughter for an unknown reason, and Itzy noticed it.

"Is something funny, huh?" She asked the young man.

Linus immediately shook his head and took a sip of water from the glass that was already in front of him. Ryker cleared his throat to get the girl's attention.

"Can you answer Jace's question? We also want to know what's on your mind," said Ryker.

Itzy removed his gaze from Ryker and moved it to the pasta in front of her. She took a deep breath before starting to speak. "What will you do if I tell you that I don't want to eat with you? Will you leave?"

"Itzy!" Xinthy exclaimed, standing up from her seat, clearly taken aback by Itzy's behavior. This was new to her, as Itzy had never acted this way before in front of them. But she couldn't understand why she acted this way when the newly hired guards were with them at the dinner table.

"Calm down, Xinthy. Sit down," Gerard said, stroking Xinthy's back to calm her down. His wife followed him. She sat down and didn't look back at Itzy.

"Let's eat first, okay? We shouldn't be exchanging words in front of the table," Gerard said to her daughter. "Let's finish eating first, and we'll talk later, Itzy."

Itzy swallowed, nervous about what might happen later in their father-daughter conversation.

Itzy complied with her father's request and ate with the four bodyguards, despite her reluctance to have them around. She didn't harbor any hatred towards them personally, but if getting rid of them would bring her peace of mind, she was willing to do whatever it takes. The reason behind her desire to distance herself from them was her experience with bullying at school. She feared that if her parents found out, it would tarnish her father's reputation as a successful businessman. Itzy held great respect for her father and didn't want her personal struggles to bring shame to his name. As she ate, she couldn't help but feel nervous about the upcoming conversation with her father.

It's just that her bullies don't know about her father; otherwise, they wouldn't treat her like this. The reason they are unaware is that the couple has not introduced Itzy to the media. The bullies did not know Itzy when they made her their target, and she had no intention of telling or bragging about her family's status.

After eating, Gerard immediately called Itzy to his study to talk. Itzy took a deep breath to get rid of the nervousness in her chest before she entered her father's study.

"Dad," she called her father.

Gerard sat up straight and leaned his back on the swivel chair he was sitting on. He stared seriously at Itzy, who, in turn, could not get rid of the nervousness in her chest. He twirled the ballpoint pen he was holding in his fingers and said, "Take your seat."