♡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...
⚠️ this chapter contains the topics that might be triggering for some readers
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After my birthday celebration with Cara, I'm too drunk to drive, which leaves me no choice but to call Kenny.
Cara and I stand in the driveway, waiting for him. The evening is surprisingly balmy, and the air carries the scent of blooming trees.
"What's going to happen to all this?" Cara motions to our surroundings with her hand. "So many memories. It's your home, too."
I hug Cara's shoulders, and she leans into my side. "I wish I knew," I say. "I can't even talk to my father, and The Flavor is closed. I guess once they let me see him, I'll ask, and if the authorities confiscate everything, I'll use my trust to pay the staff."
Cara clicks her tongue, looking at me as if I've spewed nonsense. "With your trust money? No way in hell, Tara."
"I will if I don't have a choice. Don't argue."
A cab pulls over, and I unlock the gates to let Kenny in. Cara ogles him openly as he strolls toward us. "Even better in person," she whispers, fanning herself.
Smiling, I watch Cara and Kenny get acquainted. He can charm the hell out of anyone effortlessly, and Cara is easy prey.
"Well, it's been my pleasure," Kenny says ten minutes later when I fail to mask a yawn," but our birthday girl's tired."
Cara kisses me and waits until Kenny and I get in my Maserati.
I stretch in the passenger seat to get rid of the stiffness in my muscles. "Thanks for picking me up," I say. "I'll need my car tomorrow, so you saved me."
Kenny starts the vehicle and drives onto the road. "You're welcome. I'm glad you chose to celebrate today. Oh, and someone left a gift for you at the store."
I know it was Sebastian, but what he chose to give me is a mystery. For the remainder of the drive, I reign in my curiosity and answer Kenny's questions about my day, but as soon as we're home, I head to the living room where the gift is waiting for me.
It's lying on the coffee table, wrapped in red paper.
I pick it up and rid it of the packaging carefully. As soon as I see what's inside, a mix of love and sadness shakes me to the core.
Mom and I sit on a bench, holding ice cream cones. She looks at me, smiling like she did in the picture I keep on the nightstand in my childhood bedroom. The Italian cafe we used to frequent is behind us, and stretched above us is the cloudless sky.
