Chapter 5
Oh, sweet Jesus, he’s gorgeous.
Nathan Ashford is the single most beautiful man in all of existence–and he has his arms around me, holding me to his firm,
n, warm body and I stare at him, shell–shocked and spellbound, unable to form a coherent thought.
He’s staring, too. And he’s also frozen, those emerald eyes burning into my grey ones. The look he’s giving me is void of recognition but, at the same time, filled with a searing intensity that makes me momentarily dizzy.
Then Nathan blinks and moves, righting me. Suddenly, the background noise that filtered out the second Nathan Ashford had his hands on me filters back in, and I feel the curious eyes of everyone on the terrace burning holes through Lou’s dress and onto my skin.
“Um…” I swallow, feeling my face burn as Nathan’s hands slip from my waist. “Thank you.”
He raises a questioning brow, and his eyes slide from mine, taking in our surroundings.
“What happened?” he asks no one in particular.
The sound of his voice–the same, but also so different–has butterflies fluttering wildly in my stomach.
I try again to speak. “Um-”
I stumble slightly when the girl steps forward, bumping me none too gently. “Nathan,” she gasps. “Hi, I’m Valerie.” She stretches a hand to him, and he doesn’t take it, but she doesn’t miss a beat.
“Thank God you showed up. This…this filth“-she points an accusing finger between June and me, and I resist the urge to slap her finger away from my face-“they attacked me.”
My eyes widen as I sputter. “Attacked?” I look to Nathan, hoping he doesn’t believe her. “It was an accident; my sister-”
“Who isn’t even a contestant,” Valerie interrupts, getting in my face. “She shouldn’t be here; she’s a nuisance and so are you!”
I turn to June. My sister is looking at me, her eyes wide with fear and guilt. “I’m sorry,” she whispers, her lower lip wobbling.
1 move, grabbing her hand and pulling her behind me. I turn to Nathan. “I’m her primary guardian, and she has…needs. I couldn’t leave her on
her own.”
Nathan doesn’t say anything, just looking between all three of us. There’s not a single ounce of recognition in his gaze, and the thought makes my heart sink. It’s bad enough that he so brutally rejected me, but it wasn’t even memorable enough for him.
It makes me feel foolish for remembering. For knowing all the ways Nathan’s different and all the ways he’s the same. He’s taller and slightly broader. His hair is lighter but shorter. But the look in his eyes–that vaguely distant, slightly indifferent look he kept for people outside his
circle. It’s the same.
“Please,” I whisper, beginning to panic slightly. “We can’t be apart; I have to take care of her.”
“She shouldn’t be here,” Valerie insists, shooting me a disgusted look. “And if you’re so attached to your baby sister, you shouldn’t be here
either.”
“The guards that brought us didn’t have a problem with it,” I snap back at her, feeling my hackles rise impossibly high. “What the hell is your problem?”
She steps forward and pokes my chest with a perfectly manicured finger. “You,” she seethes. “You and your little brat running around stinking of poverty and attacking other competitors are my problem.”
“It’s just a dress, it was an accident, and we’ve apologized over and over again.” I glare at her. “Get over yourself.”
At this point, anyone who wasn’t looking in our direction from earlier is definitely interested now. I can hear June behind me, sobbing quietly, and that makes me angrier. She already believes that by being my ward and with her condition, she’s ruined my life.
But she’s my little sister–my baby. I would do anything for her, and if it means leaving this pretentious competition where she’s evidently not wanted, I’ll do it in a heartbeat.
1/2
Chapter 5
Valerie turns to Nathan, her entire form vibrating with righteous indignation. “Do you hear this, Nathan?” she asks, moving towards him. She wraps a hand around his arm, and he makes no move to discourage the contact.
She sniffs. “Instead of apologizing for creating such chaos in your home, she’s Insulting me on top of it.”
I reach behind me and grab June’s hand as I turn to her, away from Nathan and the girl. “Hey, Summer,” I say softly, wiping her tears gently. “It’s okay. It was an accident and I’m not mad.”
She looks around at the other occupants, and she visibly shrinks. “I just wanted to offer you a cupcake.”
I nod, ruffling her curls gently and giving her what I hope is a reassuring smile. I squeeze her hand. “How about we go home, hmm?”
Her eyes widen. “Home?”
I nod. “Home.”
She gives me a small nod, and I straighten up and turn back to Nathan’s blank stare and Valerie’s sneer. “We’re sorry about what happened,” I say to Nathan, ignoring the leech clinging to him. “We’ll be out of your hair now.”
Tugging June along, I start to walk away, towards the car that brought us.
As I walk past Nathan, however, his hand shoots out and grips my arm, freezing me in place. The point of contact is like a brand, and spikes of electricity shoot up and down my arm.
1 look up at him, my eyes slightly wide. He’s looking down at me, his brows furrowed as his eyes search mine like he’s looking for something.
I wonder, does he remember me? Is he trying to place where he’s seen me before?
Again, panic seizes me. What if he does remember?
If Nathan remembers who I am and how he feels about me…
No, I cannot afford to be humiliated any further.
So I take a step back, pulling my arm out of his grasp, and force my voice to come out steady.
“We’ll be leaving n-
A flurry of movement and whispers cuts me off and draws my attention to the far side of the terrace.
My heart thuds in my chest when I see the spectacle that’s more interesting than the one Nathan, Valerie, June, and I have created.
The rest of the Ashfords have arrived.
