Loyal Heir (The Heirs 4)

“Yeah.”

Dad pats my shoulder, and then we join Fallon, where she’s talking with Aunt Jamie and Uncle Julian, my dad’s older brother.

“Fallon, your dad mentioned you’re moving into your first home this weekend?” Uncle Julian comments. “Will you host a house warming?”

“Oh, definitely,” Fallon answers. “But first, we want to get settled before I plan anything.”

Kao comes to stand next to her, wrapping his arm around her waist. He smiles politely at everyone, murmuring, “Morning.”

That’s about as much as we’ll get out of him. Fallon and Kao are a perfect match. She’ll talk your ear off, which compensates for Kao’s quiet nature.

“Carla,” Uncle Julian calls. “Aren’t you going to greet us? Or have you decided you’re too old to be seen hugging your father?”

Carla quickly rushes to her dad and gives him a hug. “Sorry, I got pulled into a conversation.”

We head out of the hall and find our assigned tables. The brunch is long and tedious, and halfway through, I’m ready to get out of here. I catch Carla’s eye and nod in the direction of the dorm. She instantly catches on, and we excuse ourselves from the table. I walk to where Aria is sitting next to Uncle Mason. Placing a hand on her shoulder, I lean down. “Are you done?”

She nods and quickly telling her parents goodbye, she scoots her chair back and takes hold of my hand.

It’s become a habit to hold her hand, and before anyone can stop us, the three of us escape the stifling affair.

I let out a sigh as I finally get to change out of the suit and into a pair of cargo pants. I pull on a shirt, and as I begin to button it, there’s a knock at my door.

“Yeah?”

Aria peeks inside. “Come on. What’s taking you so long?” She lets out a huff as she walks to me, and pushing my hands out of the way, she continues with the buttons. “So I was thinking we can stop at that adorable little café on main street.”

“We just ate,” I remind her.

She fastens the last button, then grabs hold of my left arm and begins to roll up the sleeves. “You know I can dress myself?”

Aria gives me an overly patient look. “Yeah, but you take forever, and I didn’t get to have any dessert.”

“You had cake yesterday,” I remind her. I hold my right arm out for her, a grin spreading over my face. “If someone saw us now, there would be zero doubt in their minds that we’re a couple.”

“A couple of slowpokes,” Carla teases as she comes to stand in the door. “I want to stop by Victoria's Secret.”

I let out a pitiful groan. “We were there Saturday, and you bought half the store,” I complain. “What on earth could you still need?”

“Probably granny panties,” Noah suddenly says as he passes by my room.

“Oh, you’d love to see my granny panties,” Carla calls after him.

“Nope.” He gives her an uninterested glance. “Don’t want to be scarred for life.”

Carla lets out an annoyed growl as she glares after him. “One of these days…”

Wondering what’s going on between her and Noah, I ask, “Are you sure nothing happened between the two of you?”

“Yeah,” Aria nods, pointing a thumb at me. “What he just asked.”

“Ugh,” Carla huffs. “I’ll tell you once we’re in the car.”

Aria and I rush out of my room, curious to hear what’s going on, and it makes Carla laugh.

Once we’re in my car, I glance at Carla in the rearview mirror. “Okay, spill it.”

I steer the car off-campus as Carla says, “Don’t judge me.”

“Of course not,” Aria assures her.

“So… during our sophomore year, I had this stupid crush on Noah.”

Aria almost sprains her neck to glance over her shoulder. “And you didn’t tell us?”

“Oh, trust me, I’m over that phase of insanity,” Carla grumbles. “But, I was also so damn stupid because I told him I liked him.”

“Oh, my God,” Aria gasps. “What did he say?”

Anger flashes over Carla’s face. “He’s not a pedophile.”

My eyes widen. “Holy shit. Noah said that to you?”

“Yep.” Carla shrugs one shoulder. “Since then, we’ve been enemies.”

“Well,” I sigh, “you can’t really blame the guy. You were underage.”

“Still,” Carla mutters, “he didn’t have to be so cold about it.”

Aria’s features soften as she asks, “Was he your first love?”

Carla lets out a huff. “Let’s talk about something else.”

Seeing the hurt in my cousin’s eyes, I instantly change the subject. “What do you want to get at Victoria’s Secret?”

“Oh, a bathing suit.”

“And then we can stop at Arabella’s for dessert,” Aria jumps in.

I park the car in front of the store and let out a sigh. “Come on, let’s get this torture over with.”

If I thought it would be a quick in and out, I was sorely mistaken. The girls gush over every single damn bathing suit, and after an hour, they purchase three each.