Under the Heiress' Facade

Nicholas scooted into the last row and glowered at the two pairs of passengers in front of him. He then glanced at his seatmate.

He wouldn't have minded as much if the person next to him was a beautiful woman. Unfortunately, he was saddled with Wayne, a bumpkin who was taking in every part of the luxurious car in wonder.

This was nothing like the romantic holiday he had in mind!

"Is this your idea of repaying my favor?" Nicholas groused as he leaned forward and propped his chin on the back of Hera's seat, looking dejected.

"You asked me out on a week-long trip, and here I am. Why are you complaining?" Hera countered.

"I'm happy you agreed to go out with me for a week, but what about the rest of them?" Nicholas asked pointedly, casting a meaningful look at Bernard and Shaun.

"You didn't say I couldn't bring friends," Hera said.

Nicholas fell silent. He wanted to swear.

How more obvious could he have been? Had the elaborate planning not been enough to demonstrate his intentions to Hera? Did he have to spell them out for her?

"You got a problem?" Bernard asked from up front as he cut Nicholas a sharp look.

Nicholas shuddered when he caught the icy gleam in Bernard's eyes. But Nicholas had never been one to cower, or he wouldn't have thought about pursuing Hera in the first place.

So, he snapped, "Why don't you try putting yourself in my shoes and see if you'd have a problem with this?"

"You can either put up with this or get out of the car. It's up to you," Bernard bit out coldly. He would never have agreed to let the pissant into the car if Hera hadn't said he could come along on the trip.

Bernard was no fool, and he had seen through Nicholas' filthy thoughts the moment he heard about the road trip.

He thought it was rather bold of Nicholas to pursue Hera. It seemed the punk needed someone to teach him a lesson about boundaries, and Bernard was happy to sign up for the task.

"This was my trip to begin with! Why should I get out of the car?" Nicholas seethed as he leaned back into his seat, refusing to give in to Bernard and disembark.

Samantha laughed from the front and attempted peacemaking. "Now, now, the more the merrier, right? I asked Shaun to tag along.

"Besides, it'll do your reputation wonders to hang out with the scions of two of the four influential families. You could brag about it to your friends after the trip!"

She had a point.

Nicholas kney Shaun from the

times they ran into each other at nightclubs. They had even had drinks together a few times. Shaun's moods were unpredictable, and everyone, even Nicholas, dared not cross him.

As for Bernard, Nicholas had never hung out with him before he met Hera. Rumor had it that he was not the easiest person to get along with, and his former career in the special forces meant Nicholas would never beat him in a fight.

Nicholas could stand to be the bigger person in this scenario.

l

It was just a trip. Bernard was just a soldier grunt from the special forces, so he was probably a loser in the romance department. In other words, he wouldn't stand a chance against someone as experienced in the dating field as Nicholas.

Nicholas would bet good money that by the end of this trip, Hera would forget all about Bernard and become putty in his hands!

The thought of the triumph that awaited him gave him a thrill. When it came to a battle between men, business acuity and combative skills were nothing in the face of refined emotional intelligence!

"What are you grinning about, Mr. Sanderson?" Wayne asked, giving Nicholas a curious look.

Nicholas' smile faded at once. "That's none of your business! I wasn't grinning! You're the one who's grinning, you buffoon!"Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

Wayne simply raised a brow at him.

Nicholas continued grumbling as he stared out the window. He inadvertently caught the sign at the fork of the road. They were going in a different direction instead of heading toward Greecia Lakeside.

"Wait, you went the wrong way! I want to see the sunset at Greecia Lakeside!" he wailed. He would have climbed over the middle row to take over the wheel from Shaun if Wayne hadn't stopped him.

"Shut it! Another word from you and I'm tossing you out of the car!" Bernard barked warningly.