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“But now, you really owe us dinner,” Eli adds, his eyes gleaming as he grins at me.
I laugh.
And finally feel that decade-long restlessness fade from my soul.
41
KAYLA
The coffeeshop is bustling with activity when I walk in. Chatter and laughter mix with the whirring and hissing from the fancy coffee machines behind the counter. I scan the pale wooden tables until I find the people that I’m looking for.
Jenn is sitting next to Felicia, one of the girls that we met at that party all those weeks ago, and they look to be engrossed in a deep discussion about something. Across the table, Aurora is laughing at something that Mitch said. Ever since they met during that drinking game we played, they’ve been casually flirting whenever they see each other. Aurora hasn’t said anything, but I think they might be on the verge of dating. Lionel is sitting in the chair next to Mitch, looking thoughtful as he stares unseeing at the table while he absentmindedly uses his straw to stir his iced coffee.
I stride up to them and pull out the chair opposite Lionel. They all turn towards me.
Aurora’s beautiful face lights up with a bright smile. “Kayla! You came.”
“Of course I did,” I reply, smiling back at her.
She winces apologetically. “It’s just… after what happened with Jace and your dad and all that, I wasn’t sure if… Well, if your freedom of movement had been impacted.”
“I’m an adult. He can’t exactly ground me anymore.” I chuckle and give her a knowing look. “Not that he didn’t try.”
“Well, I never doubted you for a second,” Jenn says as she slides an iced coffee towards me.
Taking the drink she must have ordered for me when they arrived, I give her a grateful smile and a nod. Since I showed up to school with a different bodyguard this week, I had to tell them what happened with Jace. At least the short version of it. They understood. Normal twenty-year-olds don’t have to worry about their parents’ approval or opinions, but for people like us, who are so intricately connected to our family businesses, it’s a little different. It’s one of the few downsides of being a rich heiress.
“Yeah, uhm, speaking of…” Lionel suddenly says. He leans to the left and then the right, scanning the space behind me, before his surprised gray eyes meet mine again. “Where is your new bodyguard?”
A villainous grin spreads across my mouth. Leaning back in my chair, I cross my ankles and flick my hair behind my shoulder. “Probably still sitting on the couch in my apartment, guarding me while I’m taking a nap.”
He jerks back and blinks in surprise. Aurora laughs loudly enough to startle Mitch, who then glances between me and her since he’s not really all that familiar with my situation.
I smirk and take a sip from my iced coffee. “It’s really not that difficult when you’ve been doing it your whole life.”
At least not unless it’s Jace keeping watch.
Pain stabs through my heart.
God, I miss Jace.
Aurora laughs again. Jenn shoots her a look that seems to say, I told you so. Felicia just shakes her head in confusion.
Then Aurora goes back to flirting with Mitch and Jenn resumes her discussion with Felicia. It sounds like they’re talking about a fantasy series. Or maybe an anime. But I can’t really focus on what they’re saying because my mind keeps drifting back to Jace.
While taking another sip of coffee, I discreetly glance at Lionel. Since we’re sitting opposite each other, I thought he was going to start up a conversation the way he usually does. But thankfully, he seems to read my mood and instead simply pulls up his phone and focuses on that as he types something.
Relief flickers through me, because I’m suddenly not in the mood to talk to anyone.
I miss Jace.
It’s ridiculous, I know that. I’m not a kid. I don’t need anyone. I’m stubborn and independent and I can take care of myself. But I still miss him.
And I didn’t realize just how much I’ve come to love having him in my life until he’s suddenly gone from it.
I love his stupid jokes and his swaggering confidence. I love his silly lectures about how breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I love the food that he makes for me. I love his brilliant smile and his glittering brown eyes, so full of life and energy and mischief. I love how he always makes my life feel easier. Lighter. Even during the dark moments. I love how he never backs down. I love that he is never intimidated by me. By my wealth or my power or status. I love that he sees me. That he gets me. I love?—
Stunned realization pulses through me, and I sit back in my chair. Blinking, I stare at the brick wall on the other side of the coffeeshop while that sudden realization finishes echoing through me.
