21 | twenty-one

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A / N

Lengthy chapter to apologise for the delayed update, I hope it's worth it. So glad most of you guys picked Miles over Callum, to be honest. I'm usually apathetic towards my characters, but Miles is one of the very few I actually kind of like. Good taste, y'all.

x Noelle


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2 1

the one where Miles gets even hotter (like that's possible)


I COULDN'T TAKE my eyes off him. Miles was dressed far less formally than them in a heavy black jacket, but he still exuded a sense of authority and quiet confidence as he spoke to them.

A sudden thought dawned on me and I turned to Brielle. "You planned this, didn't you?"

"Don't be so melodramatic. I just overheard a conversation from one of the diners, who happened to be one of the board at Riverton University, that they were looking to hold their Winter Carnival at the beach. All I had to do was find out the date and time they'd be scouting and ensure that Miles Callaghan would be present. You ran all the way to him on your own."

I scowled. "I knew something was up when you agreed to join me this early!"

"You should thank me for it! I've heard grumblings down at logistics about how their manager looked so troubled at work lately. Any more of that and I would have to threaten to fire you."

I opened my mouth to argue, but a movement in my peripheral stopped me. As if sensing someone's gaze on him, Miles looked up from his discussion. Noticing his distraction, the other board members turned our way as well.

Damn it. I fought the urge to squirm. What a lovely sight I must've looked-all flushed cheeks, crazy curls and sweat dripping down my face.

As if coming to a decision, he squared his shoulders and excused himself. Brielle nudged me with a bony elbow. "This is your chance to put all those years of jogging into practice. Run to him!"

I shot her a dirty look and started forward to meet him halfway. As Miles drew near, Brielle offered him a gracious smile. "Mr Callaghan," she said, "it's nice to finally meet you."

Miles's eyes flitted to me for a second, before he looked at her and took her hand in a firm shake. "Ms Winters...or should it be Mrs Flores now? Congratulations on your marriage."

"Thank you. And congratulations on acquiring Blue Haven. I hope to see great things from Hale & Co, I'm sure you all won't disappoint."

He seemed to notice the challenge in her voice, because his eyebrows rose. "We won't."

"I'm sure you won't." Her gaze swept from him to me, before a tiny smirk lifted her lips. "This has been a pleasant meeting, Mr Callaghan, and I've no doubt we'll see each other again soon. But the board looks a little restless. I'm sure they won't mind being approached by a potential sponsor for their carnival, don't you think?"

Before Miles or I could respond, she swept off with her bike. As she led the board of directors farther down the beach, I turned back to him. "That's Brielle. She thinks she's subtle but she's really not."

"Of course not."

I worried my bottom lip as I studied him. His nose and cheeks had pinked from the cold and I fought the urge to brush away the dark hair that tumbled into his eyes. The expression on his face was closed-off, and I didn't know how to progress from here. Did we pretend the kiss didn't happen and just...reset?

I took a deep breath. "So, listen, about that night...I'm sorry if I made things awkward between us. Well, technically, you kissed me-but I can't say it was an unwelcome notion. I didn't regret it, if that's what you're worried about."

He bit his lip. "You didn't?"

"Not for a second. And I hope you don't either."

He nodded and shoved his hands into his coat pockets. "I don't."

"Good." Maybe we didn't have to reset. Maybe we could just...continue. Relieved, I smiled at up him. "Anyway, how've you been?"

"Busy. Between managing Hale & Co. and now this carnival... Guess who sent me here on his behalf?"

I barely held back a sympathetic wince. "And how's it going?"

"Great, as far as the planning stages go. Boring as hell, all things considering."

"Well, what would you rather have them talk about instead?"

He narrowed his eyes at me-he clearly remembered having said something along those lines awhile ago. "Celebrities, of course."

"Of course," I echoed, my smile widening.

"So listen," he said. He looked awkward all of a sudden as he shifted on his feet. "I think congratulations are in order."

"How so?"

"I believe the beach is yours."

I blinked. "What?"

"Nate and I spoke with the board yesterday. They agreed that the houses by the beach aren't for us.We're far better off managing estates like Blue Haven, where the rent we get from our tenants will be worth the overhead costs."

"Miles..." I said slowly. "Is this your way of telling me that Hale & Co. won't make a bid for the beach-houses?"

His gaze shifted away from me. "Well, I-we-know how much the beach means to you. And Caverly too."

A huge smile spread across my face. Acting on impulse, I threw my arms around him. He flinched, but didn't pull away. I was reminded of the first time I'd hugged him all those years ago. Just like before, he'd stood ramrod straight, as if he didn't know what to do with himself.

But then his arms slowly came around me to pull me flush against him. I shivered and fought the urge to shut my eyes. How had I forgotten this? His hugs were always thrilling but comforting, and being enveloped in his warmth made me never want to be anywhere else.

"Thank you," I breathed against his chest. Belatedly, I realized that I'd practically thrown myself at him-in a forced-hug, no less. Flushing, I pulled back and tucked my hair behind my ear. "Would you...if you're not too busy, that is-we could go say hi to my brother? He's, um, he's about to start his shift, I-I think?" I winced at the end of my babbling.

Miles's eyebrows rose. "Stuttering, Evers? Why would you take that nervous tick away from me?"

"I wasn't..."

"That's fine. I don't think the board needs me anymore."

I smiled and fell into step beside him. We walked for awhile and made small talk, until a distant shout cut through the air. We both spun around and I froze at the sight.

The fight that ensued in the parking lot was brutal. Three burly guys were in the midst of roughing up a shorter, smaller boy like a ragdoll. I gasped as they tossed him against a nearby car.

With a grim expression on his face, Miles strode towards them the boys. None of the boys heard our approach, but his voice was sharp enough to cut glass. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

The boys paused. My gaze went to the young boy who'd taken a beating. He didn't look a day over twenty, and he looked at us with such relieved gratitude in his eyes that I shivered. Once upon a time, Miles had looked at me just like that.

"It's nothing," one of the other boys said and raked a hand through his blond crew cut. "Just pretend you didn't see anything and keep walking."

I frowned at his words, until I realized that one of them looked familiar. "You! Josh, what're you doing? My friends saved your ass from getting kicked by those Linville kids on Christmas. I even drove you back! Why would you do something like that?"

Josh shook his head at me. "Come on, Darce, don't be like this. You're Flo's friend and you're pretty great. I'd hate for things to go to shit between us."

"It's already gone to shit with you behaving this way!" I snapped, before eyeing him suspiciously. "Is this part of an initiation?"

"It's none of your business, alright?" the boy with the crew cut hissed. "So why don't you two fuck right back off where you came from?"

I glared at him. But the moment he turned to his victim again, Miles yanked him back by the collar of his jacket. Surprise flitted across the guy's face, before he recovered with a smirk. "Guess we're kicking two asses, then."

Horror swept through me as he threw a punch at Miles's face. Miles ducked, stepped aside, and threw one back. It landed square in the guy's stomach, sending him doubling back as his two friends rushed to his aid.

The fight began again, but it was different this time. Because, unlike the young boy who couldn't fight back, Miles could and did. He gave back as good as he got, returning punch for punch as he held his ground, even when he was attacked from every side. With sinking dread, it dawned on me what else had changed about him.

In the time that had passed, Miles had learnt to fight.

But brave as he was, Miles was no match for three college boys. "Stop it!" I shrieked, and rushed forward to pull one of the boys off him. "Stop, or I'll call the cops!"

The blond guy spun around to me. He caught me by the wrist, but I shoved him back with my other hand. Undeterred, his grip tightened until my phone clattered to the ground. "Go ahead," he snarled and began to shove me aside.

Before he could, a hand caught me by the shoulder to steady me. I caught a glimpse of Miles as he slammed his fist into the guy's face. Then he shoved me aside before he could take the brunt of the guy's tackle.

Once in the clear, I started a frantic search for my phone, only to hiss in dismay when I found it. Someone had stomped on it-the screen was cracked and, worst of all, it wasn't working. Damn it.

I scrambled over to the boy who'd been beaten up and hauled him to his feet. "Where's your phone? You don't have it?" I cried in exasperation, when he shook his head. I gripped him by the shoulders as another idea came to my mind. "Go get my brother. The lifeguard further up the beach-go get him!"

Eyes wide, he nodded and dashed off. I didn't watch him leave; instead, I turned back to the fight. As Josh passed me, I grabbed him by the arm and pulled him to a halt. "Stop this! What's the matter with you-you're going to get him killed!"

"Then he shouldn't have stopped us!" Josh shouted back. "Don't think we don't recognize who he is. Miles fucking Callaghan. Liam was right. If he thinks he can walk back here, take away Caverly and tell us how to run our initiations-"

"Liam Tulden is putting words in your head! If you'd all just pull your heads out of your asses for long enough to see it-"

"Don't tell us what us what we should or shouldn't do. You of all people should know better than to intervene with a frat, Darcy. Now stay the fuck out of this!"

I dragged him back before he could move towards Miles again. With a vicious swear, he shoved me aside. But a hand caught his just in time. The relief that filled me dissolved just as quickly when I saw my brother punch Josh.

"Wait, Ean, don't!" I shrieked in dismay, but he ignored me and joined the fray.

Everything dissolved in a flurry of punches and kicks until I couldn't tell them apart. One of the boys had picked up a huge rock to hurl at Miles. But he'd ducked and the rock went crashing into the nearest car window. I stood frozen to the spot, watching the fight unfold. I wasn't strong enough to stop them-I'd tried, but couldn't. I didn't have a phone to call the cops-and even if I did, I couldn't get Miles or my brother into trouble.

"Alright, break it up!" someone barked amidst the scuffle.

I spun around. In the time that had passed, a smattering of people had gathered. I recognized a few familiar faces-some watched with genuine concern, others with avid interest. But their reactions were all the same: none stepped forward to help.

But someone had called the cops.

My heart leapt to my throat as two men in blue uniforms strode through. They pulled the other boys out of the scuffle, and I grabbed hold of Ean to stop him. But Miles and the boy with the crew cut were the last ones, and my eyes widened as the cops took hold of them.

"No, wait!" I gasped, and tightened my grip on Ean when they tried to haul him off too. "That's my brother, and that's my-" I trailed off, not knowing what to call Miles.

"Sorry, they need to be taken in for questioning," one of the cops said. "That's an expensive as hell car they just destroyed, and the owner wants to press charges. You can give a statement at the station, if you want."

I could only watch as he hauled Ean into one of the the cop cars as well. The doors slammed shut and the cars drove off, leaving a trail of dust in their wake.

Miles never once looked back.

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