Page 1 of I Don’t Need Your Protection (Harrington Bay Academy #1)

Addie

Losing your parents only a month ago and being thrown into a group home would be pretty tough for any sixteen-year-old. But learning that you’re the granddaughter of one of the most prominent and richest men in the world? Yeah, talk about drama.

But as I gaze outside the window of this fancy car with its fancy chauffeur that’s driving me to what I imagine will be the largest mansion in America, I wonder if I should give this dude a chance.

I mean, he’s supposedly my dad’s dad, which makes him family.

And my parents have always told me how important family is.

It’s kind of ironic that my dad taught me that, since he informed me that he didn’t have family.

Does that mean he didn’t want his dad in his life? So much for the importance of family.

“Miss Addilyn, we should be arriving at your grandfather’s residence shortly,” the driver, Colin, tells me. He’s a short guy with cropped blond hair and glasses.

“Addie,” I correct.

He inclines his head.

With a sigh, I fall back on my comfy leather seat and hug my backpack.

We’ve been driving for a few hours from Maryland to a town called Spring Blossom, Connecticut.

From what I researched online on my crappy phone that barely moves, it’s a super wealthy neighborhood.

I wasn’t really nervous when I first got in the car—mostly, I was ticked off.

Like who the heck does this rich guy think he is to force me to live with him?

Not that the group home was any better, but at least I lived in a world I actually belonged to.

Now I’m supposed to live as…how did the letter he wrote to me put it? Oh, right. An heiress. I’m an heiress .

But now the nerves are starting to take over.

I didn’t grow up with grandparents and I always wanted to have them.

The kind of grandparents that would shower me with gifts and candy and hugs and tell me how beautiful and talented I am.

But what kind of grandfather am I getting?

A man who wrote a letter to me and informed me of my lineage.

“Bradshaw Mansion is up ahead, Miss Addie,” Colin announces.

Scooting to my right, I press my face to the window and gape at the sight before me.

Because holy heck, that is a mansion . It’s much more extravagant than I imagined, and it’s humongous.

I swear, it takes up like two blocks. It’s surrounded by beautiful green grass with a fountain in the front and there are many trees, bushes, and flowers around.

There’s a walkway that leads to the house as well as a gate with the initials “BM”.

“No way,” I mutter as I continue to gape at it.

Sure, it might seem like a dream to live in a place like this, but I’ve seen enough TV shows to know that this kind of life is miserable.

And considering I just lost my parents a month ago, I would run into the arms of a long-lost grandfather.

But not a man who signed the letter as “Gratefully, Nathaniel Bradshaw.” Not, “Love Grandpa Nate.” And he certainly didn’t write how much he was looking forward to meeting me.

Actually, the tone of his letter made me feel both like a burden and an opportunity.

Like maybe he thought he would have no choice but to leave his fortune to a distant cousin he hated, but now that a granddaughter popped into his life, he can use me somehow.

Colin slows down before the gate, and it opens a few seconds later.

I notice a few people tending to the greenery on the property.

They all turn their heads and stare as we drive up to the building.

Oh my gosh, I can’t believe this is actually real.

I’m going to live in this huge mansion that has a staff .

When Colin stops the car before the fountain, I wring my fingers in my lap.

My heart is beating a million times a minute.

How will my grandfather react when he sees me?

Will he hug me? Maybe I’m making assumptions about him and he isn’t like the wealthy men I see in my favorite dramas?

Maybe he’s warm and loving and will tell me the day he found out about me was the happiest day of his life ?

As soon as Colin opens the car door, I’m hit with the October breeze that blows through my long, wavy light brown hair. He announces, “We have arrived at Bradshaw Mansion, Miss Addie. Please allow me to help you out of the car. Your grandfather is waiting for you.”

I swallow and take a deep breath. I can do this. It’s not like I have a choice anyway. So maybe I should have a good attitude and tell myself my new life here will be amazing?

“Miss Addie?” Colin asks.

I blink and shake my head. “Yeah, sorry.” After grabbing my backpack, I take his hand and allow him to help me out of the car. I almost whistle when I check out the mansion again. This feels like a dream. Are there really people who live like this? Apparently.

“Please climb up the stairs,” Colin instructs me.

“Okay. Thanks for the ride, Colin.”

“Of course, miss.”

Taking another deep breath and releasing it, I make my way to the stairs.

A man with a full head of white hair and a mustache is waiting outside the door.

He inclines his head when I approach. “Good afternoon, Miss Addilyn. I am Louis, the butler for Bradshaw Mansion. I trust your journey here was pleasant?”

“Um, yeah, it was fine. Thanks. And can you please call me Addie?”

“As you wish, Miss Addie. If you please.” He motions for me to enter the mansion.

This is it. The moment I pass over the threshold and enter this house, my world will change forever.

True, it changed the day my parents died in the car crash, but this is completely different.

I’ll no longer be Addie Hayes, a typical teen who’s looking forward to her first kiss, whenever that will happen. I’ll now be…ugh, an heiress.

“Thanks, uh, Mr. Butler Guy,” I say as I pass him and enter the house. “Louis,” I correct.

He inclines his head again. “Your room has already been prepared and the staff will bring up your belongings. I will take you to Mr. Bradshaw.”

Ha, my belongings. Literally the only thing I have is my backpack, which houses only a handful of things.

Like some clothes and stuff that remind me of my parents.

I hug the backpack close to my chest, clinging onto it like it’s my life.

Which it technically is. Because after my parents died, I have no idea what the landlord did with all their stuff.

For all I know, she sold everything. The items I have in here are my most prized possessions.

Louis notices my backpack and holds out his hand. “I can take that from you, miss.”

I hug it tighter. “No way.”

“I assure you it will be taken to your room.”

I shake my head. “This stays with me.”

“As you wish.”

He leads me to the foyer, and I stop dead in my tracks.

If I thought the outside of the mansion was exquisite, it’s nothing like the inside.

The floor is made of marble and there is a lavish staircase that leads upstairs that is split in both directions.

The chandeliers are large and stunning and sparkle under the sun filtering through the windows.

The ceiling is very high and has a beautiful design, as do the walls.

There are portraits of people sprinkled all over the walls, which I assume are the man’s ancestors.

Well, my ancestors, too, I guess. They feel like strangers staring down at me.

“Miss Addie?”

I tear my eyes from gaping at the walls and glance at Louis. He’s quite a distance away from me. “Oh, sorry,” I mutter as I hurry to catch up to him.

He leads me a little bit further to a door that is slightly ajar.

He says, “One moment, miss,” and knocks on the door.

A deep and masculine voice says, “You may enter,” and Louis walks in.

For some reason, that causes my palms to get clammy.

Maybe because the person who, until this moment, was just a thought will now become real.

He’s my grandfather, the only family I have left.

What if he doesn’t like me? What if I don’t like him?

What if he ships me back to the group home?

I don’t know if I’d be happy about that. Either situation sucks.

I hear footsteps and then Louis exits the room. Holding his hand toward the room, he says, “Mr. Bradshaw will see you now.”

I swallow as I stare at the open door. Why do I feel like I’m stepping through a portal that will lead me to a demon world where the inhabitants will harvest my organs?

“Please don’t keep your grandfather waiting, miss. He’s a very busy man.”

I’m guessing Louis never had to meet a grandfather he didn’t know existed until twenty-four hours ago?

“Sorry,” I mumble before releasing a breath and stepping into the room.

The first thing I notice is the smell. It’s a cologne that smells like it costs thousands of dollars.

The next thing I notice is a head of graying brown hair.

It’s the same shade as mine, and Dad’s too (minus the gray).

I force myself to fully take in the person sitting behind the desk.

He’s in the middle of writing something on fancy stationary paper with a fancy-looking pen.

His eyes are focused on his work, as though he didn’t hear me walk in.

I tear my gaze from him long enough to examine his study.

There is a bookcase to his right full of professional-looking books.

His desk is mostly clean with a few pieces of paper, and to his left is a large window with a beautiful view of the garden.

He sits in a large leather chair and there are two smaller leather chairs across from him.

His right hand makes a few more scratches across the paper, and then he caps the pen. Slowly, he lifts his eyes to me.