The Heart That's Meant to Love You

Chapter 48: Retreat

Kieran still didn't understand why he had agreed to do the retreat in Professor McNally's stead. Even less so why he had volunteered to get up at this godawful hour on a Friday morning just to take attendance outside the bus.

He told himself that he couldn't say no to his mentor. He told himself that he hadn't been given a choice. Kieran told himself a lot of things that weren't true.

Of the two buses that had been rented to transport the Fine Arts students, Kieran had been assigned to the bus that would carry mostly photography students. That didn't stop him from watching the other bus for any sign of one particular female artist.

Though Kieran wouldn't admit it, even to himself, his eyes sought the object of his growing affections. He had found, the last few times they had run into each other, that he couldn't help but notice when she walked into a room. Kieran craved small things when around her. A smile. A sigh. That flustered look she got when he invaded her space. He also found that the more he wanted her, the more he knew he couldn't have her.

Kieran had obligations. Responsibilities to others that he couldn't put aside no matter how hard he tried. He and the little rich girl could never really be together, honestly and openly.

That knowledge didn't stop his growing desire to be near her, even if it should.

Scritch. Scritch. Scritch. One by one, Kieran checked off the names on the clipboard in his hand. Names that didn't register in his head as they should. Kieran couldn't care about the students in his charge, he had enough cares already.

Bit by bit, the buses filled with students, some half-asleep and some too awake. The cargo space beneath teemed with luggage, waiting to be closed in for the ride.

Kieran took one last look at the second bus, but still didn't see his artist. Maybe she hadn't come and his entire subconscious had been wrong about this retreat. If so, he would endure the next two days as best he could alone. Perhaps it would be better if she didn't show up.

The moderator for the second bus skipped over to Kieran. "Everyone's here. Are you ready to go?"

Kieran, too tired and disappointed to verbally spar with another petty fangirl, merely gave a nod and turned to board the bus. Thankfully, the other moderator left without a word or complaint.

Kieran sank into his assigned seat and stuffed the attendance clipboard into his bag. "Let's go," he encouraged the driver.

Two and a half hours, the insufferable drive from campus to their retreat cabins. Kieran endured by putting his headphones on and drowning out the immature chatter. Mostly.

As an observant and responsible adult, Kieran couldn't help but overhear some of the gossip being thrown around between students.

"Have you heard about the Elective Beauty?" one of Kieran's students asked his seat-mate.

"The what?" A chuckle on the end of his question made the whole thing seem menacing.

"Yeah, some petty, solo-since-birth princess got a makeover or something. Apparently she's hot now."

"How hot are we talking?"

"I don't know, man." The first student sighed. "I'd go for her, but apparently Ben's already called dibs."

Kieran took note of the whole conversation, from the crass undertones to the way the hierarchy worked. He had never been a feminist, not even close, but Kieran did have a pet peeve about guys who went after girls who didn't know what they were getting into. Kieran, himself, had only ever targeted women who understood the playing field.

It didn't seem fair, to anyone involved, if only one student got "dibs" on a girl. Healthy competition, Kieran could get behind. The kind of sleaze he had almost been? Kieran would never stand for it. No matter who the girl was.

Unsure who Ben was, Kieran could only mull over what to do, but he was sure he could come up with something. Finding the new object of every man's infatuation wouldn't be hard once they arrived. Kieran would follow the stares and the crowd until he weeded out the girl they had talked about. Then he'd be sure that no one used her in their sick juvenile games.

After all, he knew a thing or two about naive women nowadays.

With a plan to teach the younger generation a lesson or two about respect, Kieran tuned back in to the music playing over his headphones. The following hour sped by with the speed of thumping bass and electric guitar.

By late morning, the chartered buses pulled in to the parking lot of a chic and trendy camping retreat. No two cabins were the same, with some being decorated like fairytales and others like old-world cottages. Some multiple stories high and others a single room. The university students wouldn't be the only ones using the retreat, but they would outnumber many smaller groups, for sure.

Retreats were meant to allow the students to relax and enjoy themselves. To build friendships. Kieran had never fit in at this kind of event, but he was no longer a student, either. He had other plans. Kieran had long ago learned all the tricks to get around curfew and dorm assignments. He would make sure it didn't go so smoothly for these students. Especially for one particular student named Ben.

One by one, suddenly energized by the new environment and the promise of freedom, the Fine Arts students departed the buses and headed toward the cabins they had been assigned.

Kieran checked off each student'sname again, ensuring that he knew exactly how many had come.

"Hey, hey, hey." The students from earlier stepped down onto the pavement, one elbowing the other in the ribs. "There she is."

Kieran raised his eyes to follow their pointed stares. His breath caught in his throat, as it always did when she surprised him. For their Elective Beauty was none other than his Little Rich Girl.

She had chosen gray again, a hoodie that fit her a little better than the clothes she usually wore and acid-washed jeans that clung to her long legs. Two tendrils of hair had escaped her ponytail, trailing down to frame each side of her face and curling just enough to caress her jaw. Naomi had, indeed, changed her style. Just enough to draw unwanted attention.

Elective Beauty? Dibs? No. If he hadn't put his whole heart into saving a naive girl before, Kieran certainly would now. He knew Naomi too well to allow anything bad to happen to her. He especially wouldn't allow college playboys to attack her. This Ben, whoever he may be, had better be prepared for the worst.