AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“And are you?”
“You don’t hold back punches, do you?” I stole a glance at him. He was serious but not angry. “I wanted to avoid you, not fuck you.” He snorted before sizing me up in a way that told me he didn’t actually believe me. “All right, that’s not entirely true, either. Like, I checked you out and, well, I liked what I saw, which, lemme tell you, was supremely annoying. But there was never a thought in my head to fuck with you to get back at Dad. Once he sees the truth of this, he’ll be on our side. Sure, I was not happy to have my life interrupted like that, but I never set out to mess with you as payback. Our parents getting married was very abrupt, even you’d agree with that.”
“Yeah, that’s true, and I believe you when you say your dad will come around to the idea of us being together.” Ciaran took on a reflective expression. “I guess I can be honest with you, too. When I first met you, I thought you were a complete snob who’d never experienced a hard day in your life.”
“But was I a hot snob?”
Ciaran’s lips twitched. “I am not feeding your ego,” he added before continuing on with his main point. “Here I was moving away from everything and everyone I knew. It was like I was this victim and you were my de facto tormentor. It didn’t feel like your life had been disrupted, at least not to the degree mine had.”
“Do you still feel that way? I mean, I wouldn’t blame you if you did.”
He gave me a half smile that gave me butterflies.
“You certainly torment me in other ways now, Matty,” he joked, and I laughed. “You’re not a saint, that’s for sure, and I still think you’re something of a snob. I suspect being a gazillionaire does that to a person, but now that I’ve gotten to know you, I realize you have problems, too, and that maybe your life isn’t peaches and cream. Plus, I can’t imagine it’s easy to find true friends.”
“Mo’ money, mo’ problems, amiright?” I quipped. Ciaran merely lifted an eyebrow to indicate I was an idiot. “Gazillionare’s not a real word. I thought you were an author or something.”
“Jackass,” he said. “You don’t want Detective Inspector Earl Shiremarch on your case. Bajillionare, then?”
He wasn’t going to like how I was about to school him.
“Son of a billionaire,” I explained. “The Vaulteneaus are the twentieth richest family in the world.” Ciaran started choking. “And guess what?” I asked before he could interject. “You’re also the son of a billionaire.”
Ciaran’s eyes went round and I knew he’d not even once considered that.
“No w-way,” he stammered. “Your dad’s the billionaire. Leave me and my mom out of it.”
His naivete was charming. It was how I knew there wasn’t a scheming bone in his body. Ciaran was right earlier: having wealth and Hollywood connections made it difficult to know who to trust and who my true friends were. I loved his candor and vulnerability.
“You’ll learn more about my dad once they get back. For him, marriage is for life. What belongs to my dad also belongs to your mom.”
Ciaran’s face blanched. “Are you telling me there wasn’t a prenup?”
“Are you going to pass out if I say no?”
“Oh, my God,” he squeezed out. “Pass out, no. But I might fling myself out of this moving vehicle.”
“At least wait until we reach I-10 to do that. There are multiple hospitals along that stretch of road.” I rubbed his thigh. “Deep breaths, baby.”
Ciaran was sucking in breaths as I took the ramp to I-605, which would take us to I-10. We were forty-five minutes out from the embassy. Using Siri, I sent a message to Joan giving her the heads up so that she and Filipe could meet us there.
After Siri sent the message, Joan sent back, “You got it, dude.”
I turned to Ciaran. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“Do you mean other than the fact that it feels like I’m living in an episode of The Twilight Zone?”
“Never seen an episode, Ciaran.”
“That’s right,” he teased. “Television doesn’t fit into the five S’s of swimming, school, sleeping, surfing, and sex.”
I laughed. “I plan to move sex up the list, if you don’t mind. And the only films I watch are at premieres.”
“There you go spouting all those hardships you routinely endure. Please, tell me more.”
“Oh no, I’m not letting you redirect the conversation, Ciaran. Tell me how you’re feeling.”
He sighed. “Like a fish out of water. Like I’m completely out of depth.” Ciaran sounded almost miserable and it broke my heart. “Mom and I went from scrounging for a living to moving into a literal palace on the Pacific Coast. It feels surreal and weird and otherworldly. I doubt I’ll ever get used to it.”
