AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What?” Ava blinks, her brows pulling down.
I explain, playing with the ends of my shirt as I do so. “My parents wanted me to go to college and study business to get a good job. I never got a say in that, so I never got the chance to figure out what I wanted. So that’s what I’m doing, figuring it out.”
Ava nods to herself again before looking at me, taking in my serious expression with a look of concern. She may not understand my choice, but judging by the softening of her eyes, I know she supports my decision. “If you’re sure, then I’m here while you figure it out.”
Her lips slowly tilt up in a smile, the kind she used to give me before I got myself into trouble, to tell me that she had my back no matter what.
I give her a smile in return, my breath expelling from my lungs as I feel a bit of the weight on my shoulders start to lift a bit, relieving me as I say, “Thanks.”
She takes my hand in hers and gives it a gentle squeeze before turning on her heel and making her way into the kitchen where my brother and her boyfriend are bickering about something.
Happy to have spoken to Ava and know that I have her support in this change, I make my way upstairs. I'm lost so in my thoughts and the array of decisions I will need to make in the coming days, that my heart jumps up into my throat when my face impacts on a wall of muscle.
“Oh!” I stumble back, standing in the middle of the hallway, and before me is Riley staring down at me with a curious expression.
I compose myself quickly, running my fingers through my hair, as I quip, “Are you trying to be creepy?”
He simply shrugs. “We need more bags.”
“Next time, have a bell on you.”
I almost expect a smart remark or something, but instead, his look of curiosity transitions into one of amusement, his dark eyes dancing with mischief, and his smile curls up slightly on one side. The look catches me off guard, and I start to blink up at him, unsure of how to proceed or what to say.
So I just give him my best bitch look and say, “What?”
He merely laughs before walking around me, leaving me standing in the middle of the hallway with a big question mark blinking in my head at what the hell just happened.
That was weird, right?
CHAPTER 11
RILEY
“You look like you’re having fun,” Conner comments as he walks out of the kitchen, seeing me grabbing clumps of garbage bags to store clothing in, an amused smile still plastered on my face.
I rise from where I was squatting, bags hanging from my hands as I shake my head. “That Mia is an interesting one, isn’t she?”
I am met with silence, but when I finally look at Conner, I see his brows furrowing, his own head shaking. “Oh no, don’t even think about it, brother.”
I furrow my own brows at this. “What?”
“That’s Ava’s best friend there. I don’t want you coming in and hurting her when she’s already been through enough.”
I flinch as if I had been hit, hurt to think that my brother thinks so little of me. Yes, Mia is cool, but I know that she isn’t ready for anything, and I wouldn’t let anything happen.
“Okay, I wasn’t going to go there. I just think she is funny.”
“That’s how it always starts. First, you find them funny, then hot, and then you realise they actually have a heart, then you’re done for.”
I raise my brows at how passionate he becomes in his rant. “You know from experience, brother?”
Conner grins. “No, Ava does.”
“Bullshit!” We hear from Ava in the kitchen before we both turn to each other and chuckle.
Once we compose ourselves, Conner slaps a hand on my shoulder. “Listen, I know you’re a good guy, but I don’t think that is what she needs right now.”
I slap my own hand on his shoulder. “You don’t need to worry. I’m not gonna go there.”
