♡AN ENEMIES-TO-LOVERS ROMANCE♡
Attending the same college is the only thing Sebastian Hutches and Tara Van Doren have in common.
To Sebastian, Tara is a rich, spoiled girl, obsessed with her looks and status.
To Tara, Sebastian is a rude, arrogant...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
When Bast unlocks his front door, a curly-haired woman bursts into the foyer. She wraps her arms around Sebastian but keeps the hug brief and cuts her eyes to me.
"Mom, she's my friend Tara," Bast says.
A grin springs across her face. "I'm Nora. I'm so glad to meet you."
"Likewise." I accept her outstretched hand, shaking it. "Thank you for having me."
"Nonsense. When Basti said he was bringing a friend, we were happy. You'll have to forgive my husband for not being here. Ray's still at work."
My gaze meets Basts. I mouth Basti, and he narrows his eyes in a silent warning, so I refocus on Nora and hand her a box with pastries I bought. “This is for you.”
“Thank you so much, but you didn't have to,” Nora says, taking the desserts. “Basti, did you tell Tara she didn't have to?”
Sebastian huffs out a chuckle. “Yes, Mom, I told Tara she didn't have to. But she's stubborn, and she hates me, so she wouldn't listen.”
Nora’s head snaps up. She glances at me and rewards her son with a glare. “What did you do, Sebastian?”
“Nothing,” I rush to say. “It was just some bugs. But in Sebasti’s defense, I glitter-bombed him first.”
Bast tries to hold in his laughter but fails, and the sound of it rings in the room. I don't think I've ever heard him laugh like that. It throws me off-balance, and my confusion grows even stronger when Nora slips her arm around my waist and presses me to her side. “Thank you.”
I look down at the woman. “For glitter-bombing your son?”
Nora sighs, squeezing me, and her eyes glisten almost as if she were about to cry. A movie is being filmed in Sebastian’s foyer, and I didn't get the script, so I plaster a grin on my face and turn to Bast. “Show me the woods. You promised.”
Nora frowns and points a hand toward the hallway. “But I was going to make tea. Or coffee.”
“It'll get dark soon,” Bast says. “We won't take long. Maybe Dad will be home by then, and we can try the pastries together.”
“I’ll call and ask him. And no more bugs, Sebastian, you hear me?”
Bast presses a palm to his temple in a mock salute. “Yes, ma'am. No bugs.”
After he opens the front door for me, I give Nora a small wave and step onto the porch.
A heavy arm settles on my shoulders. My heart does a small flip, and warmth floods my cheeks.
“Mom can be too much,” Bast says. “Sorry if she scared you.”
“Of course, she didn't.” I descend the steps of the porch with him still hugging me. “She just loves you.”
