The Reluctant Heiress: A Novella by L.M. Halloran

Author:L.M. Halloran [Halloran, L.M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2017-11-16T16:00:00+00:00

17

I open my eyes to a dark room. Rolling over, I squint at the clock on the nightstand. Nine o’clock. My stomach is tight with hunger, my mouth dry as dust. Groaning, I force my stiff body up, across the room, and into the hallway. Light filters up the stairs, as well as the soft sounds of a television.

Padding barefoot downstairs, I find Nona sitting in her favorite recliner, a padded, floral monstrosity that everyone in the family has tried at one time or another to replace. When she sees me lurking out of the corner of her eye, she points at the two-seater couch. On the low coffee table is a glass of water and a tray of cold cuts and fruit.

I slump onto the soft cushion and drink the water in long swallows. When I hear Sebastian’s voice on the television, I gaze vacantly at the screen. It’s one of his action flicks. In the current scene, he’s running half-naked through a jungle.

When I can’t stand looking at him anymore, I glance at Nona. She’s already watching me, the compassion on her face unbearable.

“Why was I so mean to him?” I ask her softly.

She sighs. “Oh, child. So many reasons, yes? You’ve always been a perfectionist. Poised and controlled. Always working harder than you needed to, for everything. My boy… my sweet, smart boy. He brought chaos to your ordered world. I’m sorry that I never saw how hard his arrival was on you, being the only girl.”

I can hardly absorb her words. “I don’t understand,” I manage.

She settles back in her chair. “When he returned from that trip to Los Angeles,” amused eyes flash my way, “when the two of you spent time together, he came to me distraught. He loved you, Candace. He wanted to drop out of school and move to the West Coast to be with you.”

“What?” I whisper.

She nods. “I told him he was an idiot. That you’d lose all respect for him. I reminded him why he was at the university. There were many reasons for him, too, but one was to prove himself worthy of you. Of all of you.”

I stare at her, my mouth open. “Why?”

Her lips curve sadly. “He’s never told you what happened to him in Italy?”

“No.”

She hesitates, then shakes her head. “Then I shall not, but know this—deeply ingrained in my nephew’s heart is a need to be worthy. To be loved and accepted. A need beyond, perhaps, the basic need in us all.”

“But he’s…” I trail off.

Perfect.

Brilliant.

Famous.

Nona, understanding my silence, says, “He doesn’t see any of that.”

I drop my head into my hands. “I really messed up, Nana. Sebastian… he wanted to try again, recently. With me. But he hurt me so much the first time, I went kind of crazy. Said horrible things to him. That I didn’t want him.”

“Mmm,” she says, nodding. “He was your first love, and he broke your heart. And now you’ve broken his. It’s like one of my daytime shows.”

I snort, but misery swiftly overcomes humor.

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