AllFreeNovel
Share Us
liv
In a crowd of tall, fit, well-dressed men gorgeous enough to belong on the big screen, none should stand out, yet he does. I could say that’s because I have intimate knowledge of what’s under the suit, but one glance shows Sebastian’s there too, and he doesn’t capture my attention the way Callum does.
I make myself turn back to my half-sister, who just asked something. “Sorry?”
“I said, have you tried the gallery before?”
“Oh. Um, no, actually. I’ve only visited the national museum. But it’s gorgeous.”
“We should eat at the restaurant here one day. It’s delicious.” She smiles. “If you want to, of course.”
“Yeah, sounds great. Tell me when?”
“Feel free to name drop me,” Bella offers. “They’ll squeeze in a table even if it’s full. Actually, text me, too, and I’ll crash your date. I freakinglovethe new chocolate cake.”
“I love whenever I don’t have to feed myself,” I admit.
I used to cook and I’m not terrible at it, but I’m not fond of it either. Now, outside of the dinners covered by my meal plan, I’ve developed an unhealthy relationship with various takeout apps and the taco truck across the road from the dorm.
Grace inhales sharply. “I love to cook!”
“Good to know we weren’t actually cloned after all.”
The gallery launch is a private event, by invitation only—Grace brought me as her plus one since all of her friends have their own invites—and I can already tell the art isn’t the star of the show: it’s basically a posh party with an open bar.
Smartly dressed servers hand us glasses of bubbly, appearing to top them up before they ever get empty. I’m not even sure how many glasses I’ve drunk, but I’m on the tipsy side, which isn’t good.
I can’t help it, my eyes drift toward his corner a fair few times. He’s stopped watching me now, acting like I’m not there.
I don’t like it one bit.
I note that the crowd in the large gallery hall was somewhat segregated at the start—us girls under twenty-five around Belladona, the proper adults together around the bar, and the guys; Callum’s friends. While he’s the one I can’t help watching, the attention’s mostly monopolized by another man, a little taller than him, and with an easy smile that doesn’t reach his eyes.
There were also a few older people—past fifty—but they soon left.
As the evening draws on and the champagne flows, we mix and match a little; some of the guys come closer to us, a few girls venture to their side.
I stay firmly planted by Grace, and Callum remains on his wall like his back is glued to it.
But Sebastian does make his way to us.
Bella’s being hugged by a gorgeous dark-haired man everyone knows—her other half, Prince Nicolai.
Sebastian kisses her cheeks first, but then, he tilts his chin towards me. “Liv. It’s been a while.”
I hope I don’t blush too obviously. I’m surprised he remembers my name, honestly. I was just a pair of tits and a couple of holes to him. “Sebastian.”
“How’s RUA treating you? I hear we’re both freshmen, but I don’t think I’ve seen you around.”
No surprise. The campus is pretty vast.
“I love it,” I say. “What do you study?”
“Political science. You?”
“A bit of this and that. I don’t know what to focus on yet.”
It makes me sound so flighty, but he nods like it’s perfectly okay. “There’s a career advisor if you need it, you know. Once you get a feel for what you like, their job is to talk you through your options and tell you how to get there.”
