Page 3 of Rejected Heart (The Westwoods #5)

LIAM

TWELVE YEARS AGO

It was odd to be back on the school bus only twenty minutes after I arrived at school, just to head to a place that was like a second home to me.

As it turned out, we were going on a field trip.

Suffice it to say, I always enjoyed taking field trips with my class.

While I wasn’t necessarily a bad student, I certainly wasn’t the kind of kid who preferred to be sitting at a desk with an open textbook while attempting to learn.

Class trips always gave us a break from that monotony and a more hands-on, visual approach to learning, which was right up my alley.

Although I was still excited for a day away from school, I wasn’t quite sure I’d learn much during today’s trip. Because we were visiting Westwood’s, or more formally known as, The Westwood Company. And it was a place owned by my family .

Westwood’s was a 115-acre campus in Landing, Pennsylvania that had been home to the world’s most renowned chocolate-making factory.

The business was opened a couple of generations ago, and it had started out as just being that small chocolate factory.

Over the years, through continuous expansion, we were a full-fledged confectioner, producing more than just chocolate—though that remained the largest chunk of the business’s revenue.

And beyond the sweet treats, Westwood’s had put Landing on the map.

Folks came from all over the world just to visit our campus. We had a museum, a chocolate factory tour, the hotel, and the amusement park.

School trips were not uncommon, but this year would be the first year that my class was visiting.

We’d have to get in the educational part of the trip this morning, but after a stroll through the museum and through the chocolate factory, I’d be able to join my friends and classmates for some fun in the amusement park.

I had not a single doubt that everyone was looking forward to that part of the trip.

Once we arrived and got off the buses, we were split into two groups, where half would start in the chocolate factory while the others were in the museum. We’d switch before we were all let loose in the park.

While I recognized some of the faces of the employees, I wasn’t on a first-name basis with most of them. Not when it came to the school tours, anyway.

And though I wasn’t necessarily upset that my family owned The Westwood Company, I was desperately hoping I wouldn’t see any of my brothers here today.

I was fifteen, the second youngest of six children, and the only boy in the family who hadn’t yet graduated from high school.

I had one younger sister, Jules, and one older sister, Ivy, who were the only two who hadn’t graduated yet, either.

But Wyatt, Cooper, and Tate had all graduated—in that order—and now worked here in the official capacity.

If they saw me here with my class, I wouldn’t have put it past them to try to find a way to embarrass me.

The group I was in started in the museum before heading to the chocolate factory. Everyone seemed far more interested in the tour through the factory, but that could have been because we were all promised some chocolate at the end of it.

Following the tours and a quick break for lunch, we were given permission to roam free in the park until it was time to meet up to get back on the buses to head back to school.

Now, it was my time to shine.

My friends and classmates all approached me, asking where to go to find specific rides throughout the park. I directed everyone as best I could, and before I knew it, I was left standing with my three closest friends.

“Where do you want to start?” I asked them.

“The roller coasters,” they answered in unison.

I grinned before I took a step beyond the group and waved them along behind me. “Come on.”

For the next thirty minutes or so, my friends and I made our way around the park.

We were able to get on quite a few rides during that time, since it was mid-week in late October.

There were people other than the students and faculty here, but nowhere near as much as we saw in the summer months when everyone was off from school and took summer vacations together.

We had made our way over to one of my favorite roller coasters in the entire park when I happened to spot one of my classmates sitting on one of the benches, just watching everyone else as they strolled by.

I slowed to a stop, my brows pulling together. Unless a group of students stopped together to eat something or wait for others to get off a ride, nobody sat on the benches. Especially not alone.

“Liam, are you coming?”

That question came from one of my friends, Ethan, as the rest of them looked at me with confusion in the expressions.

I shook my head. “Go ahead without me. I’ll catch up.”

“I thought you said this was your favorite.”

“I’ve ridden on this hundreds of times,” I returned. “Just go without me.”

They shrugged. “Okay.”

As they walked off, I moved toward the student who was still sitting on the bench—Layla Snow.

Layla was one of those kids who never really had any problems with anyone and always sort of stuck to herself.

She came to school, did her work, and never got into any mischief.

While I didn’t think anyone had any reasons for disliking her, Layla also wasn’t surrounded by a gaggle of friends, either. She was merely one of the quiet kids.

I sat down beside her, noted the way her eyes widened as I did, and asked, “Are you waiting for someone?”

She shook her head. “No.”

“Have you been sitting here all day?”

“Only since we entered the park,” she answered.

Layla had been in my group when we split to do the museum and chocolate factory tour, and I vaguely recalled seeing her throughout, so I hadn’t suspected that she’d been here since before that.

“Why aren’t you going on any of the rides?”

She shrugged. “Well, everybody is already paired up with friends to ride with.”

My brows shot up. I knew Layla was on the quieter side, but I hadn’t expected she didn’t have anyone that would join her in the park.

“I’ll ride with you.”

Layla sent a look of disbelief in my direction. “What?”

“You’re missing out on all the fun, and that’s awful. So, I’ll ride with you.”

Squirming in her seat, she tucked a lock of her long hair that was the color of dark chocolate behind her ear. “That’s… that’s… Do you even know my name?”

What kind of person did she think I was? “Of course, I do. You’re Layla Snow. Why would you… You know what, it doesn’t matter. We only have so much time left here today, so we should go on a couple of rides. ”

She licked her lips. “That’s really kind of you to offer, Liam, but I… Well, honestly, I’m not sure I’m brave enough to ride them. Rides like this make me nervous.”

“Really? What do you think is going to happen?”

“What if it breaks, or I go flying from my seat at the most crucial time?”

I cocked a brow as my lips twitched. “Are you saying that you think we don’t maintain our equipment here?”

Her expression turned horrified. “Oh, God. No. I didn’t mean anything like that. I’m just a bit of a chicken. That’s all.”

“Aw, come on. I’ll go with you. And I can promise that nothing bad is going to happen. I help work on these in the summertime.”

“You do?”

I nodded. “Yep. I love working with my hands. I’ve always enjoyed learning how things work, and since I intend to manage the maintenance and operations of this amusement park once I’m done with school, I spend my summer learning everything I can about it now.”

“Wow, that’s impressive.”

Grinning, I stood and held out my hand to her. “Thanks. Now, I promise I would never take you on any of these rides if they weren’t safe. You can trust me.”

She held my gaze for several long beats, and I questioned whether I’d been convincing enough to get her to stand and join me. I waited so long, I started to lose hope. But then, she surprised me. Layla placed her hand gently in mine and stood. “Okay, Liam. I’m trusting you to keep me safe. ”

I smiled at her. “Always. I promise.”

With that, I led Layla away from the bench and to my favorite roller coaster. She was jittery the whole time we were in line, and she didn’t hold back from screaming the entire ride, but she did it.

I was so proud of her and took her on a few more rides that weren’t nearly as intense. Despite that, she shoved her face into my shoulder and held on to me for dear life.

When I arrived here today, I hadn’t anticipated anything like this happening. And I certainly didn’t know that this was the kind of girl Layla was. But there wasn’t one thing I didn’t enjoy about spending the rest of the afternoon with her.

LAYLA - ONE WEEK LATER

I was a good student.

I followed the rules, always turned in homework and assignments on time, and studied for my tests. Without any major distractions in my life—no close friends, no boyfriend, and no extracurricular activities—I would have needed to slack off substantially not to do well.

And whenever I had the chance to get ahead on long-term assignments, like research papers, I took advantage of that time. It often happened during my study hall periods, which is where I was now.

No sooner had I pulled out my notebook, attempting to use my time wisely, someone sat right beside me.

The study hall periods usually took place in either the cafeteria, as long as it wasn’t during a lunch period, or in the auditorium. I was currently in the auditorium.

Never, not once in all the weeks since school had started this year, had anyone marched over to sit down beside me. And when I looked to my right to see who it was, I couldn’t say I wasn’t the least bit shocked.

Twice.

Twice now, Liam Westwood had approached me when I was alone. I didn’t even think he knew I existed.