The Rejected True Heiress (Liora and Callum) novel Chapter 175

“What?”

“I saw a girl getting trampled and had to help. Don’t go thinking there was more to it than that.”

I stared at him. “I never said that,” I replied slowly. Callum just pushed the cart past me and approached the librarian’s desk without another word, leaving me standing there in confusion.

Just a coincidence, he said.

Right.

I was about to go after him and demand another explanation when a commotion in the hall suddenly caught my attention. I could hear people talking, and through the windows in the doors, I could see a crowd gathering outside.

Curious, I headed out into the hall to see what was going on. The crowd had gathered around a bulletin board, and upon closer inspection, I saw that several posters had been put up. I pushed my way forward to get a better look.

“ROYAL ALERT,” the posters read. “Missing sapphire brooch; important royal heirloom belonging to the Princess. Please see attached photograph. Anyone who returns the brooch to the King’s Beta will receive an award in the sum of five hundred dollars.”

My brows skyrocketed. “Five hundred bucks?” I heard another student exclaim. “That would cover all my textbooks for next year!”

“Textbooks? That’s half my rent!”

“I’ve gotta find that brooch!”

I folded my arms. I wasn’t sure how my father got wind of the fact that I’d lost my mother’s brooch, but it didn’t matter; I knew exactly where it was. Fucking Bianca had it.

In fact, the devil herself rounded the corner just then. Everyone turned to her right away.

“Princess Bianca!” someone said, waving the poster in front of her. “Are you looking for—Oh. Wait. Isn’t that the brooch right there?”

I didn’t answer right away. What was I supposed to say to that, anyway? First of all, we weren’t “romantic rivals”. Not really, although I supposed my fake kiss with Zane at the concert didn’t exactly help with that.

And second, I got the sense that that wasn’t the entire reason she wanted to know more about my background. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but something told me that I should avoid telling her too much.

Thankfully, I didn’t have to come up with an answer. Zane arrived right on cue as if coming out of nowhere. He sidled up beside me with a grin, draping his arm around me and pressing a kiss to my cheek that made my entire body go rigid.

“There you are,” he said. “I was just looking for you.”

Bella’s face pinched as she watched the scene between us. I wanted to explain, but she didn’t give me the chance. Without a word, she turned on her heel and left.

“You’re welcome,” Zane whispered in my ear.