King of Harts

1

Emory

What are the odds that I cross paths with the one person that despises me most?

Alright, so that's an exaggeration, I can name two people who have him beat in the category of who wants to torture Emory Hart the most. But he's definitely up there, he's on the list so that counts for something.

I've spent the last two years avoiding him. Even when he is in my childhood home for the holidays, I've managed to limit our encounters at all cost.

And it's not like I hate the guy, no, that's not the case at all even if he does infuriate me sometimes. Most of the time. The case is he definitely hates me and me being the people pleaser that I am, I respect that.

I don't crave attention, not in the way my siblings do anyway, so when I came to terms with the fact that Adrian Harley just didn't care for my existence, I laid off.

For his sake, not mine.

Well, I tried to. It seems every time I think I'm doing him a favor, he picks a fight. I don't usually fight, not like how he and I do. As I said, I'm a people pleaser and just find it easier to make sure everyone around me is happy.

Adrian's favorite pass time is pissing me off and I put up with it, up until I decided not to anymore.

Translation: I hide. Like a coward.

I stopped making an effort to converse with him because it probably annoyed him. I didn't bother offering up my time to help with anything because my sister, Addie, usually beat everyone to it due to her giant crush on him. And I didn't care to shower him with the attention he already receives by being unusually attractive.

Like, out of this world attractive.

He and my brother earn enough of that attention from the female population, it certainly wouldn't make a difference if I fed their enormous egos.

My relationship with Adrian, if that is what you want to call it, has morphed into nothing but bickering every chance we get and me slipping away from him whenever the opportunity approaches me. I managed to limit when I see him because of my brothers fancy job across the country and I was totally okay with our limited interactions.

Less bickering and less feeling inferior to his scary good looks.

Now all of my efforts have gone to shit because here I am, hiding behind my closest, and probably my only, friend without hinting to him that I'm using him as a human shield.

"The hell are you doing?" Xander quirks an eyebrow at me and I clear my throat.

"Nothing. Waiting in line...with you" I shrug and avoid looking at Adrian to the best of my abilities because Xander can whiff suspicion like a freaking police do-

"Ooh, you're hiding from someone!"

Goddamnit!

Xander's very observant. He catches everything and happens to be one of the most obnoxious attention seekers to ever exist.

"Who are you hiding from, Mo?" He's grinning that mischievous and evil grin of his and I can't stop what's to come no matter how hard I try.