The Heir: A YA Fantasy Romance (The Heir Series: Book 1)

by Kayla Eshbaugh

  “Are you okay, Shad?” I asked, moving to him as he walked to the window. The song started playing in my head louder, and I tried to not focus on it so that I could hear Shad—but it was so loud.

  “I am just thinking too much about my family today, and that makes me a little down.” I reach out and fixed his collar, and I felt his breath on my cheek.

  “There, now you seem more yourself.”

  He smiled a sad smile. “Thank you, Emma.” The look in his sad, golden eyes made me want to cry. How could I heal his pain like he always did for me? I wrapped my arms around him and held him tight. My mother always told me that there was nothing like a hug to move sorrow along.

  “I understand how it is to miss your family. I ache for my parents. I am sorry if you’re feeling that.” He moved closer to me and touched my cheek softly, pulling my face into his hands, and I wanted to fall into him. We stood close to each other. He wrapped his arms around me and picked me up in a warm and electric-enriched embrace.

  “I am sorry for your loss, Emma.”

  “I am okay—actually, better—knowing you,” I said, nearly breathless in his embrace. I prayed and wished and hoped that he would hold me forever and never let me go. “You—You make me happy. I like being around you.”

  His hands moved from around me, one hand cupping the back of my head and the other on my waist. “I am so glad Emma, I like being around you, too.” His eyes looked so sad still, and I wanted to kiss them, kiss away the pain I saw there. How could I make him better?

  “Are you sure you are okay?” I asked, looking up at him. He nodded, but the pain in his eyes was all too real.

  “I am okay, just sad this evening; sorry, I do not mean to make you worry about me.”

  I shook my head, “No, Shad. I will always be here for you, all right?” I smiled at him, and he touched my jaw, sending splinters of electric currents through me.

  “Oh, my darling, I am so happy to have met you.” I felt warmth surge through me as he called me “darling” again, still so strange and yet so him in a way that I could not describe. His hand cupped my jaw.

  “There you go, using that word again.” I barely breathed because how could I breathe when someone like him is touching me, looking at me in this way and calling me his darling, as if I am his everything.

  He smiled. “I decided that the term, suits you,” he said, rubbing his thumb over my jawline, and I wanted to melt into him.

  “How so?” I was impressed that the words came out of my mouth.

  “You are precious and timeless.” I looked into his eyes, those golden eyes that made me weak in the knees, “And so very sweet.”

  “Don’t say that,” I said barely audible, but I knew he could hear me—he always heard me, even when I didn’t say a thing.

  “Why not?” he asked, looking concerned.

  “Because I am nothing, Shad; I am just me, Emma. I am broken and unfixable, and I—I am no one’s darling.”

  “You are not broken, you are not nothing,” he stated. His eyes held me to that spot, like an anchor. It was as if he was begging me, pleading with my soul to believe him, to know he spoke truth: “And you are ‘darling—’ you are darling to me,” he whispered. I tried, oh, I tried because I wanted to; oh, how badly I wanted to be his everything, his “darling”—his world. But, here he was giving me such happiness, and I could feel the depths of sadness from his soul as he touched my cheek. A tear trickled down my face, and he caught it. Seeing his sadness made me feel it inside of myself.

  “What is wrong?” he whispered softly.

  I thought of Shad being so sad, and I thought about all the things Ryker had discovered about my parents, that they were murdered. The face of the man who did it haunted me. “You, seem so sad. I wish I could make you feel happy again,” I said, unable to speak all of the horrible truths of my life.

  “You make me happy, Emma. Do not cry because of me, please, darling.” His voice was low and rough as he called me “darling” again, so naturally; I felt my toes curl.

  I wish he would kiss me, I thought and then quickly shoved the thought away before I said something embarrassing out loud—as I tended to do.

  “I should go; I shouldn’t be up here with you alone; it isn’t proper.” He cleared his throat and moved a couple of inches away from me but still held me there with him. There he was, acting like the proper and old fashioned boy who I was growing incredibly attached to. I moved my hands from around his shoulders, and he moved his hand from around my waist. Just as I was about to step back, he pulled me closer, still holding the back of my head with one hand and his lips met with my cheek in a kiss. Electric fire burned inside me, blossoming from where his lips touched my skin and bloomed through me, smoldering at his touch. I almost gasped when he did it but clamped my jaw shut. He smiled as he pulled away and hopped out the window with a wave, and I stood there, frozen to the spot, to the place where Shad had kissed me. Okay, so it was only on the cheek, but that doesn’t matter. I lifted my hand to my cheek. Only two more days until homecoming—two more days, and I would wear my dress and dance with Shad all night long. I stood there, watching his shadow walk across the street, thinking and knowing that I was the luckiest girl alive.

  I still had a very hard time being around Shad without blushing or wanting to plant a kiss on his perfect face, but so far, I was doing a pretty good job of maintaining control. Shad was always a gentleman, and I loved him for that. It was something that made me instantly trust him and made me feel cared for and safe. He is a little old fashioned, but I won’t lie, I love it.

  That next morning, I walked to my locker to retrieve my books for the day. Shad was leaning up against my locker, looking at his phone. He was as handsome as ever. I hoped he was feeling better, not as sad as the day before.

  “Hey, Shad,” I said, trying hard not to stare at him and forget my locker combination, but I failed miserably.

  “Hello, Emma,” he nodded, and I felt his eyes on me as I fumbled with the lock. Am I supposed to go counterclockwise or clockwise? I tried to remember, but Shad had a way of making my brain useless. “It is clockwise, Emma,” he softly whispered in my ear.

  “Uh, thanks,” I said, spinning the dials around to re-start. Why could I never act normal around him? Once I finally got my locker opened, I saw a rose sitting there on top of my books. It was a long-stemmed, yellow rose. The thorns had been picked off, so I picked it up and let my nose touch the velvet petals. The scent was intoxicating. How many times had I done that and still it amazed me every single time? Tied to the bottom of the stem was a little white piece of paper, and written in the most beautiful cursive, clearly belonging to Shad, one word was written:

  Friendship

  My heart sunk. I wanted to crumple up that paper and stomp it into the pavement. I didn’t want to be just his friend. I wanted so much more from him. Is that all he thinks this is? I love the gesture; I mean, hello, a gorgeous boy gives me a flower in my locker? Heart-eye emojis all day long. But why did he have to give me a yellow rose and point out friendship. Was he making it clear that friendship is all we would have? After that kiss last night, I was sure he felt more for me.

  “Shad, you shouldn’t have,” I said, trying to smile and be grateful even though my heart was crumbling.

  “I am sorry for last night. I should not have just come over without asking. Sometimes, I just need to see you, and I cannot control myself, but I will—I promise.”

  “Have you met yourself, Shad? I don’t think you could be more controlled if you tried. Seriously, it is almost like you are too perfect—I mean not like you really are, who is perfect anyway? And I mean just because you stand there, looking all perfect and acting all perfect doesn’t mean you are, I guess.” I closed my mouth and turned to my locker, ducking my face inside it. Did you really just call him perfect-looking? That is not something a friend would say. I closed my locker and cleared my throat.

  “So now I am beautiful and perfect? Emma, my darlin
g, the complements you give me are high praise indeed. I have to admit, you are wrong.”

  “Shad—“

  “Do not worry. I will not tease you. But, there is just one thing I wanted to do before you go to first period today.”

  “What?” I asked.

  He smiled his playful smile and kissed my cheek, and I felt like I was soaring through the sky.

  His electric touch was gone from me just as quickly as it came. But, effects from his touch lingered. His words also seemed to linger as he walked away, and all I thought was:

  darling,

  darling,

  my darling,

  I am his darling.

  Over and over again in my soul the words, bent around me, making me feel them, knowing the words were true.

  Bridge

  “EMMA,” SHAD STOOD IN the doorway of the Rose Village. His white shirt and tie still in its perfect and neat place. I stopped what I was doing to look at him.

  “Shad, you need another rose?” I asked, hoping he wouldn’t pick the yellow rose again and break me into a thousand pieces.

  He walked to the counter where I was and stopped as he reached me. He looked at his digital watch, then to me. “I need to show you something before it’s too late. Will you let me show you?” He took my hand in his and kissed my palm so softly. The electric charge came, and I was reminded yet again that I was fully alive because of him. He had awakened me; the hole was mended inside me, the ache gone. I was sleeping beauty, and he had saved me. Because of him, I felt again. I smiled and turned my face. There were a million emotions bubbling between us. I heard the song I made up play between us again, and I savored the sound of it. I will never tell him this, but I will go anywhere he wants me to go.

  “I’ll go with you. You’re lucky—we are closing now.”

  “Great, do you have a coat?”

  “No, I don’t. Is it raining?” I asked, pursing my lips and looking outside the window.

  “I have an extra coat in my car. I will go get it.” He smiled and left, making the door chime in his wake. Moments later, he jogged up to the door and held out the tan leather Jacket that I had seen a dozen times at school. I got goose bumps just thinking about wearing it. He handed it to me, and I slipped my arms into it. I had not realized that it had a hood, and I was grateful for it if we were going out in the rain.

  “Thanks,” I said, turning to face him.

  He smiled his large grin and gave me a nod.

  “Now, just let me lock up.” I walked over and set the alarm and locked the back door. As we left, I locked the front door and stood under the overhang of the shop. The rain had paused for a moment, I noticed, as I watched Shad walk in front of me. He reached toward my arm, and I let him take it.

  I didn’t speak as he pulled me around and behind the shop. There was a trail back there that seemed familiar but I couldn’t remember ever being there before. We continued to walk in silence as rain started to fall. As soon as it hit me, it pierced my face. I watched the rain fall down his coat and drench him; I was soaked right away along with him. I felt clean and new as if I was reborn. With that rain, with the cold and dark, I found my peace. How odd that seemed. We walked down the path a ways and off to the right onto another path. I was looking at everything as if seeing clearly for the first time. Though my vision was blurred and the rain didn’t help, the world looked different than ever before. I didn’t know how to explain it; I only knew that it was different, shifted, as if I was suddenly looking at the world with new eyes. As I was taking everything in, I felt something wet and sticky on my legs. I looked down to see that I was in a puddle, a huge puddle, and not only that, but I was completely soaked. I was completely covered in brown, muddy earth. Shad had been in front of me and turned as it happened. I looked down at my pants, my feet, and Shad’s jacket: yep, all covered in mud. I put my hands on my face to feel that it, too, was also covered. At that moment in the pouring rain, Shad laughed. Not an I’m-making-fun-of-you laugh, but a joyful laugh. I could not help but laugh, too, feeling how wonderful it was to release one laugh after another. We stopped laughing, and he reached for my hand, and I gave it to him. He pulled me out of the puddle, and I fell into him. I was surprised he didn’t pull away from me—because I was drenched in mud, after all. He lifted his free hand that was not holding me and wiped the mud from my cheek and forehead. I could barely breathe. Why does his touch make me so crazy? I stared at his lips, and I wanted to feel his lips against my own, and I begged him, with everything inside me to kiss me.

  “You are a bit of a mess, are you not, my darling?” His hot breath sent chills through me, and I didn’t know if he really understood how deeply true those words were both inside and out. He smiled, and I watched as rain brushed against his cheeks and fell from his chin. I couldn’t laugh, I couldn’t smile, I couldn’t do anything then, but just look at him and take him all in. I heard the rain, felt his warmth around me, saw how his eyes looked into me, into my soul, my song playing in the background, humming from within me. Once he was done wiping my face clean, he turned and started to walk again. I walked the rest of the way down the muddy trail in the rain with Shad’s hand in mine.

  After walking a few minutes, the path led us to a small creek, and I thought that maybe I used to know its name when I was younger.

  The sun was just beginning to shine as we reached the water. We stepped onto a small cobblestone bridge that must have been over fifty years old. Shad guided me to it, and I willingly followed. He turned around to face me.

  “Are you ready?” he smiled.

  “Ready for what?”

  He turned me around and placed his hands on my shoulders and rested his head on one of his hands. I could not help the joy bouncing around inside me at his touch. Ryker has never made me feel this way. I pushed away the thought of him.

  “This—” and suddenly, I saw it.

  The water sparkled in the sunlight, and rainbows glittered in the water. Rays of light bounced off the rain as it fell. Tiny drops created patterns in the quickly moving water. I stood mesmerized by its simple, glowing, glittering, colorful beauty. The trees with their autumn orange leaves glowed like fire in the sunlight. Just as it came, it went, and just like that, the rain and the sun were gone. It was as if I would have blinked, I would have missed it. Shad let go of my shoulder and took off his hood as he looked at the sky. I watched him.

  “How, how does that happen—how did you know?” I whispered. “I have never seen anything like that before.” Not wanting to affect the beautiful scene, I spoke ever so softly.

  “Did you like it? I saw it when I was walking out here one evening. It reminds me of a place near the home where I grew up.” He must have been waiting for my approval.

  “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”

  He smiled as if in triumph. I followed him onto the other side of the bridge and down to the bank by the water. He reached down and picked up a rock and reached for my hand and placed something cold in my palm, the rock I assumed. When I looked, I didn’t see just a rock. It was no bigger than a pebble, clear and jagged. It was a crystal, and as I lifted it up to the sun’s light, I twirled it between my fingers, looking at the reflections it created.

  “It’s beautiful!”

  “It’s a crystal.”

  I looked at him as he smiled while bending over to pick up a different rock to throw across the creek.

  He looked at the clouds. “We better go; it is going to rain again, and you might step in another puddle.”

  “Shad, why did you take me here?” I asked, not turning around to look at him.

  “Because I thought you would like it.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I wanted you to know, Emma, that even on the darkest days, when the sky cries and the clouds barricade the sunlight, that there is still light—that in the darkness, there are pieces—rays of light, and we only have to search for them, and then they light up our souls.”

  I smiled, unable to
do anything else. I turned and looked at the river. I leaned over, and could see the tiny stones in the water. I reached down and picked up a crystal, needing to touch one again to help me remember that moment. I let the crystal fall into the water and quickly followed after Shad as he placed the crystal that he had found inside his pocket. We walked back in silence. I did not know what else to say.

  As the Rose Village’s store lights came into view, I didn’t want to leave him, something that always seemed to happen when I spent time with him. He slowed down and waited for me to catch up. Our hands moved together, and swayed mockingly beside one another. He did not reach for my hand, and I wondered why. I remembered how Ryker and I used to hold hands so easily, and I want that with Shad, too, want him to always hold my hand, not just when I seem to need his strength, but always. I tried to push that thought away. Suddenly, his fingers were bending around mine, and I felt my face get warm. I felt my heart beat faster. I thought that I must have been easy to read because he always seemed in tune with what I wanted. I searched for something to say.

  Shad pulled my hand up with his own to his mouth. He looked at our hands for a brief moment, and then he looked at me. As his lips touched the skin on my hand, I felt as though my heart would break through my chest.

  “Something happens when I am around you. I feel things.”

  He moved our clasped hands away from his lips. I watched as a small smile made its way onto his face. “You feel things? I make you feel these things?” he asked with his alluring smirk on his face, which made me want to kiss him. He was getting more playful the more I spent time with him. I liked it, but why did he have to be playful at that moment?

  “Shad, I am serious,” I said.

  “Me, too—” he smiled. “I am glad that you have feelings for me.”

  Shad drove my car back to my house, and I wondered for a moment what he was going to do without his car, which he left in the parking lot. He turned off the car as we reached my house. He got out and seemed to run to my door because he was there in one heartbeat, opening it up for me. He took my hand and led me up the sidewalk to the driveway. He wanted me to have feelings for him, he had said. He had feelings for me. I repeated this over and over again in my head, shocked.