The Rejected True Heiress (Liora and Callum) novel Chapter 351

Liora’s POV

The lecture hall erupted into noise as students gathered their things, chairs scraping and voices chattering. I shut my notebook and slipped it into my bag along with my pencils, then slung the strap over my shoulder and stood.

“Man, I’m huuuungry,” Mia complained, rubbing her belly. “Let’s go get food.”

“Cafeteria?” I asked.

Mia shot me a sheepish smile. “Or… I was thinking we could go to that new sandwich shop in town? Splurge a little?”

I snorted. “I assume you’re implying that I should be the one to drive.”

Mia grinned. “Look, I still fear that Shirley will explode or something with us in her someday, but seeing as you’re the only one between us who has a car, it’s not like we have another choice, huh?”

I rolled my eyes but smiled and followed my friend out of the classroom.

The hallway was bustling at this hour. It was a Friday, with only two periods left before the weekend. I had heard some talk of a start-of-semester party happening at some point this weekend, so everyone was excited and talking amongst themselves.

Mia and I made our way toward the side exit of the building while I rifled in my bag for my keys. I didn’t notice that Mia had stopped walking until I suddenly walked right into her, nearly knocking both of us over.

“What the—”

“He’s coming,” Mia whispered.

I looked up to see exactly who she meant by he. Callum. And he was beelining straight for us, pushing his way through the crowd with his eyes fixed on me. I cursed under my breath, considering slipping away and pretending I hadn’t noticed him, but it was too late.

“Liora.” He pushed his way the last few feet toward me. His left hand was behind his back. “I was looking for you.”

I pulled my keys out of my bag. “Were you? I wasn’t looking for you.”

Callum didn’t seem to notice my jab, or if he did, he chose to ignore it. He pulled his hand out from behind his back, and Mia gasped, pressing both hands to her mouth.

A large bouquet of red roses was on full display, making even the nearby students stop and stare. I counted at least a dozen flowers in the bundle.

“What’s this?” I asked, not taking the flowers.

“They’re for you.”

My heart stopped. A few girls passing by twittered amongst themselves and swooned. But I didn’t take the flowers, even though I felt a heat creep up my neck that hadn’t been there before.

“Why…?” I asked, eyeing Callum warily.

He held them out a little further. The smell of roses hit my nostrils, sweet and enticing.

“They’re a gift,” he said. “Take them. Please.”

I stared at the flowers. Then at him. His steely eyes were shining with something that I had been seeing more and more of lately, and it was weird and uncomfortable, and I didn’t know what to do with it.

My mind instantly went back to the other day, when Callum had openly asked me out to lunch on the quad mere days after breaking up with Bianca and sending a formal engagement rejection letter to the palace.

I wanted to feel touched about it. Deep down, I really did want that.

But there was also no way to erase all of the hurt Callum had caused last semester. Dates couldn’t. Flowers couldn’t. He had still openly rejected me, severing our mate bond and destroying my wolf, all because he thought Bianca was the princess and not me.

That hurt like fucking hell. And I wasn’t about to suddenly turn around and let him try to woo me with flowers just because he came to his senses. As sweet as the gesture was, I had far more pride than that, and a list of bachelors in my pocket that felt heavy with the weight of expectation.

“No thanks,” I said.

Callum’s eyes guttered somewhat. “Why not?”

Before Callum could respond, Zane snatched the flowers away, sniffing them and then sighing dreamily. A few bystanders giggled.

Callum stood, dusting off his knees. “One date,” he said to me again, ignoring Zane. “Just let me take you out once. That’s all I asked.”

I opened my mouth, but Zane cut in, “If you want her so badly, then why don’t you accept my challenge? A race.”

I glared at Zane.

Callum looked at me. “If I race against Zane and win, will you please go on a date with me?”

I hesitated, not sure what to say. The whole situation felt absurd and chauvinistic. But it also, admittedly, intrigued me a little. I had never seen Callum try so hard with anyone, not even Bianca, and especially not with me.

It brought out a little streak of satisfaction in me that I tried to squash, but couldn’t entirely.

Either way, I was almost entirely certain that Zane would beat him in a race. If I had beaten Callum twice before, then Zane, who had been racing for years, certainly would.

Maybe then, once he lost, Callum would leave me alone.

And if he won…

Maybe that was just fate.

Everyone was looking at me now. I heard a few bystanders, all female, quietly encouraging me to accept. Finally, I huffed hotly, my shoulders drooping.

“Fine,” I muttered.

Callum let out a breath. Zane grinned.

“Very well,” Zane said. “We’ll race tonight. Eight o’clock sharp. Last one’s a rotten egg.”