The Heirs: The Silver Knight

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

2 Years Ago

Dublin

Imogen Donnelly

The pub that Josh, Eli, and Owen dragged me to is crowded. Far too crowded for my liking. They insisted upon going out tonight, and like the fool I am, I agreed to their shenanigans. Mom, Dad, Trevor, and I got here two days ago. They were all back at the house having a nice evening, catching up on the old times. I know Mom doesn't love coming back to Dublin – the place she was born and raised. But having Uncle Cal, Aunt Vivi, and obviously Dad around brings her a bit of joy.

I didn't want to infringe on their catch-up time, and I certainly didn't want to sit in my room doing nothing all night. I didn't even have Trevor to use as an excuse since he promptly passed out at 8pm sharp. Being six, that is fairly understandable.

I find myself missing my cousins/best friends back home. I keep checking my phone to see how things are going back in Chicago. Sophie and Tate were shopping for senior prom dresses this weekend. Ari is busy with ballet. Therefore, the texts have been few and far between.

Eli and Owen are flirting with a group of girls. Josh is hanging out with a few rugby friends. He's trying to include me but I'm having a hard time keeping up with their sports-talk. When I see an empty barstool, I capitalize off of that and dart towards it, sighing with sweet victory as I sink into the worn padded stool.

The girls Eli and Owen are flirting with giggle loudly. I check my phone again. Nothing from my other cousins back in Chicago. They'd probably be proud of me for coming out tonight. Going out isn't really my thing. Parties aren't really my thing. Who am I kidding? Socializing isn't really my thing.

Sophie, Ari, and even Tate, are so good at it though. I'm usually the tag-along, the one who keeps them in line, keeps Sophie from flirting too hard, Ari from drinking too much, Tate from arguing... that's just my role. And I'm used to that. I don't mind it.

I don't know what I was thinking coming out with Josh and them.

I don't get to see my second cousins much, so I figured what better time to step out of my little bubble than now – in a totally different country with a bunch of people who I'll never see again?

"Can I get you something?" the bartender asks, Irish accent thick.

"A coke?" I ask.

The bartender nods and retrieves a soda for me. Josh and his friends are laughing about something. Eli has taken one of the girls to a dark corner to make out with her. Owen is still reveling in attention from the other pair of girls. I concentrate on the straw of my soda and bite down on it as I suck half the thing down.

What the heck am I supposed to do?

I push my glasses up and check my phone again.

Still nothing.

I look around, making sure no one is paying any attention to me (spoiler alert: they rarely are) and open my reading app, opening the latest book I got from the library on my phone.

I shouldn't have come, but I won't ruin my cousins' time just because I'm a self-proclaimed stick-in-the-mud.

The book is a YA romance that I've been enjoying. I sigh and try to stifle my giggles at the main characters' cute banter. I cover my lips as a giggle escapes at a particularly cute scene. My glasses go flopping down my nose, so I adjust them and look up, hoping to get a refill on my now empty soda.