Falling For The True Heiress

~~~~~~ Amelia’s POV ~~~~~

"Amelia, come over."

Caleb’s voice pulled me away from the screen, interrupting my thoughts about Sylvia’s foster parents and the strange way they had been looking at me, as if I had committed some terrible crime.

I turned toward Caleb.

"Oh."

Then I glanced back at the screen.

"I have to go," I said, forcing a small smile at Sylvia.

I lifted my hand and waved. "I’ll talk to you later. Bye."

Sylvia smiled. "Bye, babe."

And she ended the call.

The screen went dark. For a few seconds, I just stared at my reflection, my thumb resting against the edge of my phone as my smile slowly disappeared.

Were they already disappointed?

Was it because Sylvia was dating a girl?

Or was it because that girl was me?

I lowered my phone with a sigh.

A hand suddenly rested gently on my shoulder, and I turned.

Camila.

"Any problem?" she asked before sitting beside me.

I looked at her, then glanced toward Caleb.

"I thought he was calling me."

"Yeah." She smiled faintly. "He was. He just wanted to ask if you were interested in the snacks."

"Ohhh."

I nodded slowly.

Right.

Snacks.

Camila stared at me for a moment before taking both my hands in hers.

"So," she said softly, "tell me. What’s wrong?"

I looked down at our intertwined fingers.

I wanted to tell her.

I really did.

But I didn’t know how to explain what I was feeling without making everything worse.

"Is it about Sylvia?"

My head snapped up, and my eyes widened.

"What?"

Camila raised an eyebrow.

"How do you know?"

She simply shrugged. "I’m not blind, Lia, you know." A small smile touched her lips. "And I’ve known you long enough to recognize every little thing you do."

I lowered my gaze. "I’m sorry, Cam."

Camila sighed softly.

Her hand left mine for a moment before she reached over and gently patted my head.

"Why are you apologizing?" she asked.

I didn’t answer.

"So tell me." Her voice remained calm. "Are you seriously dating Sylvia?"

My heart skipped, but I slowly nodded.

Camila looked away. For a moment, she said nothing before she slowly nodded.

"I see."

"I’m sorry," I whispered again.

She looked back at me. "You don’t have to be sorry."

Her smile was small and almost painful.

"You weren’t mine to begin with."

The words hit me harder than I expected.

My chest tightened.

It felt as though someone had reached inside my chest and squeezed my heart with a fist.

I swallowed, watching her face.

Camila was smiling, but her eyes weren’t.

She was trying so hard to look okay. But I could see it.

The hurt in her eyes.

The sadness she was desperately trying to hide.

Camila drew in a slow breath before speaking again. "But do you remember that dating Sylvia won’t be easy, Lia?"

I nodded. "I know, Cam. I knew that before I accepted her."

"Then why were you staring at your phone like someone just told you the world was ending?"

I hesitated. My fingers tightened around hers.

"I think Sylvia’s foster parents don’t like me very much."

Camila’s expression changed slightly, and her eyebrows immediately pulled together.

"What makes you think that?"

I shook my head. "I don’t know. Maybe I’m just imagining things."

"No." Camila squeezed my hands gently. "You’re not the type to imagine things for no reason."

I looked at her.

She was watching me carefully now. "So what happened?"

I took a slow breath.

"I don’t know. They were looking at me strangely during the call."

Camila frowned. "Strangely how?"

"Like..." I searched for the right words. "Like they already knew something about me. Or like they were angry just because I was there."

Camila was silent for a moment. She stared at me for a long moment before she sighed.

"Lia..."

I looked up.

"Don’t let other people’s opinions make you question what you feel for her."

I blinked, surprised at what she told me.

She smiled faintly. "If you really love Sylvia, then be ready for whatever comes with her."

My heart softened. "Cam..."

She shook her head. "I’m serious." Her smile slowly disappeared. "Because from the way you’re acting, I can tell you’re already scared."

I looked away.

She was right.

I was scared.

Not because I didn’t love Sylvia.

I did.

That was exactly what frightened me.

But because I had something I desperately didn’t want to lose.

I pouted at Camila.

She stared at me for a moment before a soft smile appeared on her face. Then she opened her arms.

"Need a hug?"

I nodded immediately.

I didn’t even hesitate before stepping into her arms. I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her closer, burying my face against her shoulder.

"I love you, Cam..."

"I love you too," she murmured, hugging me tightly.

For a moment, I forgot about everything else.

The strange looks from Sylvia’s foster parents.

The questions constantly running through my mind.

All of it disappeared.

Then—

Cough.

Cough.

Cough.

I froze, and Camila’s body stiffened before we slowly pulled apart.

"Looks like you two are having a fun time, right?"

I turned toward the voice.

Sasha stood there, casually munching on chocolate flakes as she watched us with a mischievous smile.

I stared at her for a second, and then I glanced at Camila.

She looked embarrassed.

A smile immediately tugged at my lips. I leaned closer and planted a quick kiss on her cheek.

"You’re the best."

Her eyes widened, then her entire face turned bright red.

She immediately lowered her head.

"Owww." Danny’s laughter came from behind Sasha.

I turned to see her walking into the room with a huge grin on her face.

"She’s shy."

I burst out laughing and shook my head.

Camila covered her face with one hand.

"Stop it."

Danny only laughed harder.

I stood up and looked at Camila. "Have you eaten, Cam?"

She looked up at me. Her cheeks were still bright red.

Before she could answer, Sasha and Danny started laughing again.

"Wow," Danny teased. "Little strawberry."

"Danny!" Camila protested.

Sasha suddenly leaned closer to Camila, her grin widening.

"How about I kiss you too?"

Before she could get any closer, Danny grabbed the back of her clothes and pulled her away.

"What do you think you’re doing?"

Sasha stumbled back. "I was joking."

Danny narrowed her eyes at her. "Were you?"

Sasha immediately looked away and straightened her clothes.

"Yep."

I stared at them and then pointed between the two of them.

"Wait..."

They both looked at me.

I looked closer at them. "What is going on between you two?"

Danny shrugged as though the question had nothing to do with her.

"Nothing."

Then she turned toward Sasha. Sasha was still smiling.

I looked from one to the other. There was definitely something going on, but I just couldn’t figure out what.

"Hmm." I shook my head. "Whatever."

I turned back to Camila. "Come on. Let’s find something for you to eat."

She nodded and finally stood up. As she walked toward me, I reached out and gently took her wrist.

"Come on."

We headed toward the kitchen together.

The moment we stepped inside, my stomach growled loudly.

I froze.

Camila looked at me.

I slowly looked down at my stomach.

Great.

I was starving.

I hadn’t eaten anything that morning before coming here.

My stomach growled again.

"I’m really famished," I muttered.

Camila laughed softly. "You should have eaten before coming."

"I know," I sighed.

Then a completely ridiculous thought suddenly crossed my mind.

Or...

Could I count what happened between Sylvia and me as breakfast?

I stopped walking as my eyes widened.

What the hell was I thinking?

"Shit, Amelia..."

I blinked rapidly and shook my head.

Like, seriously?

Of all things to think about right now?

I covered my face with my free hand, trying to hide my embarrassment.

Camila glanced at me. "Are you okay?"

I immediately dropped my hand. "Yeah."

She raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"

"Absolutely."

I forced a smile. "I’m just hungry."

Camila stared at me for another second before shrugging.

"Okay."

She turned toward the refrigerator.

I let out a quiet breath of relief.

Because there was no way I was going to tell her what had just crossed my mind.

Absolutely not.

Some thoughts were better left inside your head.

I stood beside Camila, watching as she looked through it. Then my phone vibrated in my pocket with a message notification.

My smile disappeared.

For some reason, my heart immediately jumped.

I pulled out my phone, and the screen lit up.

Sylvia.

I unlocked my phone and opened the message.

Sylvia: Did you eat?

I stared at the message. A stupid smile slowly spread across my face.

Camila glanced at me. "It’s her, isn’t it?"

I quickly locked my phone. "No."

Camila gave me a look. "Lia."

I bit my lip. "Okay. Yes."

She shook her head, laughing softly. "You’re hopeless."

I unlocked my phone again.

My fingers hovered over the keyboard before I typed.

Amelia: Not yet.

The reply came almost instantly.

Sylvia: Why?

I smiled before typing.

Amelia: I was distracted.

Three dots appeared and disappeared. Then it appeared again.

My heart skipped.

Finally, her message arrived.

Sylvia: By what?

I stared at the screen. A mischievous smile tugged at my lips.

I glanced at Camila, who was busy taking ingredients out of the refrigerator.

Then I typed.

Amelia: You.

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