BILLIE-HALES & ZEALOUS

Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

"Junior, please, will you hurry up? We're gonna be late!" I hear my mum call out from downstairs.
I'm sitting on my bed in my room while tying up, my bootlaces. I also roll my eyes, only because we won't be late. We're only going to her cousin's place, Hope's place, to be precise.
Apparently, she has some great photos to show me of her recent trip to Italy. So she thought that I'd like to see the town my Papa had grown up in. Well, to be honest with you. From what my Papa told me, it wasn't a happy childhood.
Not only losing your family but getting placed in foster care. Hell, staying until he turned sixteen too. I bet it was rough until he met Braden. Who by the way, is Hope's husband."
His parents adopted him too. The reason I say "too" is Brade's parents, Dean and Shell, adopted him too. They'd adopted Braden when he was about eight years old and then my Papa when he was about seventeen. They also have a daughter Annie is her name. Well, she's a police officer now working her way up to be the best. Her words, not mine. I have to tell you though she's pretty good at it.
Anyway, a few years later, my Papa and Brade flew the nest as they say. They moved back to sunny England where they both stayed at Brade's old family home. To make a long story short, a lot of crap happened at that time. That's when Braden finally reunited with Hope.
As for my Papa, he met my mother Jenna Amelia Dalton was Harriott. And let me tell you they had a bit of a story to tell too. You know, like how they'd met. The stuff they'd both been through just to get here, any sane person would've crumbled.
So anyway, once I'd finished tying my laces up I'd made my way down to her. Not before spraying a bit of CK first hey you just never know who I'll meet on the way."
"Bloody hell, Junior, it shouldn't take you almost an hour to get ready. Seriously, even your Papa doesn't take that long, and he still takes longer than me."
Again, I end up rolling my eyes, and she sees it too. So I end up receiving "the look." It's a look, I've become used to seeing over the years too. It tells me, to not roll my eyes, or mess with her.
"Mum, nobody takes as long as my dad.
Trust me, he'd give Anise a run for her money."
When I finish telling her this she ends up nodding her head agreeing with me which ends with both of us laughing.
Who's Anise? Well, that's my big sister. Well, I say big she's smaller than me, but she's almost three years older than me. I also have an older brother too. He's older than Anise too and he goes by the name of Lincoln Junior.
Yeah, he's our half-brother. Sadly, his dad had died. He'd actually taken his own life when Linc was little. Well, he's back in Alabama. You know, catching up with some of his dad's family and as for my sister? Well, she's waiting for my mum to pick her up.
She was off visiting our grandparents on my mother's side, kinda on Linc's side too. Well, you see my mum's married to Leo who's Linc's dads, dad. I hope you can understand that. Trust me, I struggle with it all too. They'd met through my aunt Mars. It's a long story, but it's definitely one for another time. So for now, I'm telling you my story. And we're now on our way to Hope and Brade's place. Only not long after we'd arrived I'd felt slightly lost for words. I did because I'd stared into a set of the most amazing emerald-green eyes I'd ever seen.

"Oh. Zealous, this young lady here is Billie-Hales. You might know her as Hales, Isaac and Harvey's granddaughter."
I'm lost for words. I actually cannot speak.
Holy shit! Talk about a blonde bombshell.
"H-Hi, Zealous,"

Oh, fuck me. Her voice, it's hot as hell. It's soft with an almost husky tone to it. I'm suddenly brought out of my stare when my mum nudges me. I have to clear my throat just so I can say hi back to her.

"Billie here is taking an interest in photography. So I've offered to help her out by showing her a few of my works. Hence, why you're here too. Though, I might as well 'kill two birds, with one stone' as they say."

No, I've not met her before. Well, maybe I have, but it was probably when I was little, but we never got properly introduced.

"Wow, really? Well, it's a pleasure to meet you Billie-Hales. Can I just call you my Baby-B though? I mean, it's a bit long for me to say. You know?"
Her eyes go a little wide and I'm thinking she's warming up to me, but no. This chick just slams me down pretty much straight away.
"My name is Billie-Hales. Or Billie, and I ain't your anything either."