Loving Her (Hartwell Academy #3)

Chapter 1

lilah

On my thirteenth birthday, I closed my eyes and wished on my candles that I would have the most exciting teen years possible. I was imagining all my favorite dramatic TV shows, already picturing the vampire I was sure to fall in love with and the popularity I would gain immediately.

In a way, my wish came true. But not at all in the way I expected.

The moment I heard the giddy scream, I knew my hopes for a nice, peaceful afternoon had been thrown out the window.

Sometimes, when my brother came to visit me at boarding school, we managed to fly under the radar, but most of the time, it ended like this—running through the shortcuts in the streets behind my school, trying to lose all the fangirls in love with him.

Because those exciting teen years I wished for? They came in the form of being the younger sister of a world-famous boy band member.

“I’m really sorry about this,” Luca said as we turned down an alley filled with dumpsters overflowing with trash.

I gagged as the smell overpowered my senses, but I kept running, knowing that something as trivial as garbage wasn’t going to stop some fangirls from chasing after their favorite celebrity.

I glanced over my shoulder at my brother, not slowing down my strides. “This alley leads to Maple Street, where Poppy’s–”

I slammed straight into something.

Well, more like it slammed into me—because as I stumbled backward into my brother’s arms, blinking the stars out of my eyes, I realized the something had been a dark blue door that definitely hadn’t been open ten seconds ago.

“Oh my gosh!”

I groaned as I heard the voice of the last person in the world I wanted to see right now. I rubbed at the side of my head where I was sure a bruise was forming right that moment, and let my gaze slide to the person whose hand was on the inside knob of the door.

“What are you doing here?”