Is this destiny?

~ Reno ~

When Sarah and Aiden reached White family villa, JoAnna and Jeff were already there. They arrived with a previous flight.

After exchanging greetings and pleasantries, JoAnna and Sarah went to Aiden\'s old room to talk discuss details of their plan.

"I have texts and audio from both Lindsay\'s and Scarlet\'s phone from last week. There isn\'t much." Sarah frowned. "But they are definitely going to use Liam. Lindsay exchanged number of messages with him, and they met more than once to discuss something related to you and Jeff."

"So, it seems that Cox sisters are making plans in person." JoAnna guessed.

"That is a possibility." Sarah rubbed her chin absentmindedly. "But we don\'t know what they are up to. The only thing we can do is to keep our eyes open and tackle issues are they come… we need to be very careful. If Lindsay was involved in the incident with sabotaging the saddle, who knows what they will plan next."

"There is no proof. But I am confident that she was involved. If her gaze could kill, I would be dead long ago… Also, that Liam is a problem."

Sarah giggled. "Don\'t worry about him. I will take care of Liam, again."

"What do you think we should do? Wait for them to make a move and pretend they succeeded? Or take initiative and shut them up? Or..." JoAnna was interrupted by the knock on the door.

It was Elanor. "Hi girls… Do you mind if I join you?"

"Sure, no problem." JoAnna glanced at Sarah. "We were just talking about the party tonight."

"OK… What are you planning?" Elanor\'s curious gaze moved from JoAnna to Sarah.

Seeing that JoAnna and Sarah glanced at each other, and are not speaking, Elanor got impatient. "I know you are planning something! Although we planned for a party, having Jeff call me to move it to Lake Tahoe and increase number of invites… Not to mention the biggest give away was not to miss inviting Cox family. Now, what are you up to!" She gave them a \'I caught you red handed\' smirk.

"Nothing much…" JoAnna spoke first. "We just want to show Cox girls their place..."

"And hopefully make an example of them." Sarah finished JoAnna\'s sentence.

"I see." Elanor smiled while looking at these two young ladies who captured hearts of her sons. "So, what are you planning?" She repeated the question.

"We don\'t know what they are up to. So, we will watch them and respond to their actions." Sarah responded.

"There is no way that they are coming without any schemes." JoAnna added. "Last time Lindsay improvised, now she knows I will be there, so she might have a better plan."

"Don\'t have too high hopes. Cox girls are not known for their intelligence, if you know what I mean." Elanor was serious. "But that does not mean that they will not put you in danger. As much as I would like to see them getting what they deserve, this is a dangerous game you are playing. The ladies in this area are known to be vicious, and they are playing this game for a long time… Don\'t you think you are at a disadvantage?"

Sarah smiled mysteriously. "True. But the more time passes, the more time they have to plot and scheme. The sooner we take care of them, the better. Have some faith in us, Nori."

Nori frowned. "I told you to call me mom…"

"Sorry." Sarah looked at her apologetically. "It\'s not something that rolls easily off my tongue. No offense, I like you very much. But it will take time for me to change how I call you."

Nori pouted, but still nodded in understanding. Aiden told her that Sarah can be specific in terms how she addresses people and that she should not mind.

JoAnna went back to the topic. "We are not alone. It\'s two of us, aware to watch out backs. We are not coming unprepared." JoAnna smiled confidently and didn\'t want to reveal more than that.

Elanor looked at them with concern. "I see you want to keep me out of this… Don\'t take unnecessary risks. If you need an ally, I\'m here."

"Don\'t worry. We got things covered. Just enjoy the show." JoAnna assured her.

"Eh, younger generation is taking over…" Elanor shook her head. "Fine. I look forward to see what you two can do." Elanor headed out of the room. "Don\'t forget… in one hour we are going to get ready."

…

Elanor arranged for JoAnna and Sarah to get styled in the same salon with her.

"It seems that Jeff and Aiden had issues agreeing on a style…" Elanor mumbled as she looked at two gowns.

JoAnna was looking at a bright red gown that Jeff arranged for her. "And he promised that he will not pick anything flashy…"

Sarah looked at her black gown and smiled. "I\'m not complaining about Aiden\'s choice."

Sarah turned to JoAnna and gave her a compassionate look. "Let\'s go with our picks."

Elanor was surprised. "You two have other gowns?"

JoAnna laughed. "Of course! No offense, we love your sons, but we would not let them style us."

"Speak for yourself!" Sarah scolded JoAnna. "Aiden has a good taste…" She turned to Elanor. "Nori, we have one for you as well. Interested?"

Elanor perked up. "Oh! My daughter-in-laws arranged a dress for me? I\'m interested!"

The stylist wheeled in three gowns that Sarah and JoAnna gave her previously. They were three gowns in similar style. Long, sleeveless gowns with a V-neck opening in front. Design was simple and ageless. The fabric plays tricks with someone\'s eyes, as it has embroidered details with silver thread that shows only under a specific light angle. Sarah\'s gown was light green, JoAnna\'s was light blue, and Elanor\'s was teal.

"Oh, this might be too youthful for me to wear…" Elanor contemplated as she checked the gown before removing it from the hanger.

"Nonsense!" JoAnna snapped. "Go, try it on and see how it fits… if any alterations are needed, we have time."

Two hours later, three ladies had matching gowns on, and even their hairstyles matched.

"Next time we should get Sophia and mom to join!" JoAnna exclaimed.

Elanor looked at her and smiled. "I always wanted daughters. This is nice. If we can increase company, that would be better."

"You still didn\'t meet with our mom in person, right? I have a feeling that you two will get along very well." Sarah was giddy from excitement.

…

Elanor left with Oscar first, and JoAnna and Sarah arrived at the party in a helicopter with Jeff and Aiden.

Jeff was sulking because JoAnna didn\'t wear gown he picked for her, but few kisses later he was feeling much better.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "You know he is doing that on purpose?"

"Why would he sulk on purpose?" JoAnna asked. "I will kiss him anytime he wants."

Sarah could not believe how JoAnna trusts Jeff like that. \'He is obviously faking it!\'

When Jeff grimaced at Sarah behind JoAnna\'s back, Sarah felt like blowing up.

JoAnna didn\'t see Jeff\'s silly face, but based on Sarah\'s expression, she could guess what happened. JoAnna laughed and hugged Jeff. She didn\'t mind that he is faking being upset. JoAnna loves when Jeff acts childish in order to get her attention. She rewarded him with few more kisses which he happily accepted. JoAnna knows that Jeff is usually very in his serious-business-mode, and he gets to be playful only with her, and few people he accepted as trustworthy. JoAnna is happy that one of people Jeff accepts is her sister.

Aiden didn\'t mind that Sarah decided on a different gown. "You look great in anything…", was his only comment before pulling her into his embrace.

They entered the venue at the same time, pausing at the huge entrance to observe the crowd gathered. The party was ongoing for some time, and few hundreds of people were present already. As soon as first person noticed them, there was a barely audible murmur spreading and with each passing moment more and more people faced them in silence.

Jeff and Aiden proudly held their ladies around their waists while JoAnna and Sarah glanced at each other with eyes full of excitement, eager to see how their plan will unfold.