[///ON HOLD///] Animal House (Rendezvous #2)

Chapter 5

Declan casually leaned against his car with his arms crossed over his chest as he raised a brow at the sight of Nora’s twin brothers standing behind her.

“They’re not coming with us, are they?” Declan asked.

Nora simply glanced at her brothers as well. They both wore expressionless faces but their eyes glared coldly at Declan.

In the end, Nora agreed to Declan’s date—part because she did indeed need to go shopping for the charity dinner and part because of guilt. No matter how much she searched, the ring was gone. She even had Erika and Grant help search for it too, but it was permanently gone.

Fifty thousand dollars down the drain.

Besides, by the way he described the date, Nora had a feeling it was really just a way to have her tagalong to prepare for the charity dinner with Dr. Silverz.

“What?” Ace said in a curious voice. “We can’t?”

Declan pushed himself off his car and stood up straight. “Your sister and I are going on a date. We don’t have the time to chaperone two kids.”

Dane clicked his tongue before he took a fearless step towards the larger man. “Do you seriously think we’d let Nora go out with you alone? Who knows what’ll happen this time?”

Nora blushed and elbowed her youngest brother in the ribcage, but he didn’t even budge. Unlike Nora—who took after her small-framed mother—Ace and Dane took after their father, a large man with genetics men would kill for.

Sometimes Nora wished she could’ve taken after their father as well, but she reminded herself and her brothers of their mother. In each child was a little piece of their parents, and Nora was grateful for that.

“Nothing’s going to happen,” Nora said firmly before she turned around and glared at her brothers. “It’s just a little shopping trip. And you two are not going with me. You have to wake up early for school tomorrow!”

Dane scoffed. “We’ve stayed up later than this and still made it on time to school the next morning.”

“You don’t want us to go?” Ace asked. “So this really is a date, huh?”

“No, it’s not.” Nora sighed. “Look, I’ll be fine. You guys don’t trust me?”

“We trust you…” Dane gave Declan a pointed glare. “It’s that guy we don’t trust.”

Declan smirked. “And I suggest you continue to not trust me. I do plan on taking your sister for myself, after all.”

Nora closed her eyes and internally cringed. Declan wasn’t making the situation any better and simply continued to egg on her brothers purposely.

“That’s it,” Dane said with a sneer. “We’re going!”

>>>>><<<<< 

“What the hell kind of dress is appropriate for a charity dinner anyway?” Dane asked as he stared at the assortment of dresses with furrowed brows.

“Who cares? It just has to look good on Nora,” Ace said with a dry tone before he spotted a dress on display. “I like that blue one.”

“Green,” Dane argued before he turned to the employee who stood at the side, waiting for their suggestions so she could find an ideal dress for Nora to try on. “Get green ones.”

“Blue.”

“Green.”

“Blue.”

“Gree—!”