Defiant Heir

by Michelle Heard

  I move closer and watch as he inspects the scars. “I’ll be able to remove most of them.” His finger traces over the scar stretching from Fallon’s ear to her neck. “This sucker might be a bit tricky. You might be left with a faint scar, but we can treat it afterward.”

  A hopeful expression crosses Fallon’s features. “So there’s a chance I won’t be left with any scars?”

  Dr. Menard gives her a comforting look. “I’ll do my best.” He checks the time. “I’ll see you in thirty minutes. Okay?” Giving her shoulder a squeeze, he smiles. “Try not to worry too much.”

  “Okay.” Fallon lets out a deep breath.

  When Dr. Menard leaves, I grin at Fallon. “Do you feel better?”

  She nods. “He seems confident, right?”

  “Yeah, I’m sure he’ll remove all the scars,” I reassure her.

  “God, I hope so,” she breathes.

  “Kao’s right,” Mr. Reyes agrees. He gives Fallon’s arm a squeeze. “This will all be over soon.”

  “Thanks, Daddy.”

  I go to sit down next to Fallon and take hold of her hand. Leaning over, I press a kiss to her temple.

  Mr. Reyes' eyes lock with mine, and I see the questions in them. I’ll need to make an appointment to see him to explain I’m dating his daughter.

  Hopefully, he won’t kill me.

  Turning my focus back to Fallon, I try to remain positive for her. God, I don’t know what I’ll do if Dr. Menard is unable to remove all the scars. Fallon won’t handle it well.

  Whatever happens, I’ll be there for her.

  Chapter 27

  FALLON

  Coming to, I feel groggy and nauseous. I let out a confused groan.

  “Hey, beautiful,” I hear Kao murmur. I feel him press a kiss to my forehead.

  Prying my eyes open, my sight settles on Kao’s face. “Is it over?” I grumble, still half out of it.

  “Yeah, Dr. Menard will be here shortly, but he said the surgery went well.”

  “He did?” Lifting a hand, I take hold of Kao’s arm as he leans over me, and then I drift off again.

  “Fallon,” I hear someone say. “Time to wake up.”

  I pry my eyes open and see Dr. Menard smile down at me.

  “Hi, Doctor,” I mutter, still half asleep.

  “How do you feel?”

  I sit up in the bed as my head clears of the fog still left over from the anesthetic. “Ah… okay.”

  “No pain?”

  “No.”

  Dr. Menard gestures to my face and neck. “The surgery went well. I’ve cut out the keloid scar and stitched your skin back nicely. I made sure there’s no tension, and I’m confident it will heal beautifully.”

  “Really?” I ask as hope bursts in my chest, leaving me feeling overemotional.

  “Once you feel better, you can go home. A nurse will give you some painkillers to manage any discomfort you may feel. Also, keep the dressings in place until I see you in three days for your post-op visit.”

  “Thank you.” My eyes follow Dr. Menard as he leaves, my heart still too afraid to let hope in. I think once I see my face and the scars are gone, only then I’ll be able to relax.

  Dad comes to press a kiss to my forehead, then says, “Don’t stress when you see the dressings, it’s just to cover the stitches. Okay?”

  My dad knows me well.

  I lift my hand and softly brush my fingertips over the bandages. “They’re not as padded this time.”

  “Yeah, it’s just to protect the stitches,” Dad assures me.

  My eyes drift from Dad to Mom, then to Hana. Finally, my gaze settles on Kao. He’s keeping to the side, probably so my parents can fuss over me.

  Turning my eyes back to Dad, I say, “I feel good. Can you get a nurse so I can check out?”

  “Sure.” Dad immediately leaves.

  I throw the covers back and swing my legs off the bed, and let out a deep breath. “I’m glad the surgery is over.”

  Mom takes a brush from her bag and comes to fix my hair. When she’s done, she smiles lovingly at me.

  Once we’re back at the suite, I go to shower the hospital smell off. After drying myself and putting on a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, I stop to look at my reflection in the mirror.

  There is white tape stuck over the stitches, which in my opinion, look a million times better than the red, swollen, and jagged scars.

  When I step out of the bathroom, I see Kao lying on my bed. His eyes are closed, and wondering if he fell asleep, I carefully crawl onto the bed. I press a kiss to his lips, and when I pull back, his blue gaze locks on mine.

  “All clean,” I whisper. “Do you want to sleep?”

  Kao pulls me down, and I snuggle into his body. “Hmm… it was an eventful day.”

  Lifting my head, I kiss him again. “Thank you for coming with me.”

  “Where you go, I go,” he murmurs before he claims my mouth in a deep kiss. Before I can get carried away and undress him, Kao pulls back. “No sexy times. I want those stitches to heal properly.”

  I frown up at him. “So no sex until they come out?”

  Kao chuckles. “Just three days until after you’ve seen Dr. Menard for your post-op visit.”

  “But there will be kissing?” I ask, grinning at him.

  “For sure.” His lips lock on mine, and we lie and make out for a couple of minutes before we call it a night.

  KAO

  My nerves feel like they’ve been put through a shredder by the time I knock on the front door. Noah dropped me off a couple of seconds ago. With his help, I managed to get out of the suite with the excuse Noah and I were visiting his parents.

  The front door opens, and I come face to face with Fallon’s dad. Instantly his eyes sharpen on me. “Kao. Come in.”

  “Evening, sir.” I step inside and then follow him to the living room.

  “Take a seat,” Mr. Reyes says, then he pins me with a frown. “Why did you want to see me?”

  Taking a deep breath, I clasp my hands together while resting my forearms on my knees. “It’s about Fallon.”

  His facial expression remains stoic.

  “I thought you should know I’m dating your daughter.”

  “I gathered as much,” he grumbles.

  “I love her,” the words burst over my lips, needing him to know I’m serious about her.

  Mr. Reyes tilts his head, his eyes narrowing on me. “You broke her heart.”

  “I was trying to protect her,” I begin to explain.

  When I pause, trying to gather my thoughts, Mr. Reyes snaps, “From what, Kao?”

  “Myself.” I lock eyes with Mr. Reyes. “I didn’t want to tie her down to a blind man.”

  Only then does he relax a little. “I can understand that, but the way you went about it sucked ass.”

  “Totally agree,” I reply, feeling a little less tense.

  “Now that you have your sight back, what do you have to offer my daughter?”

  “Besides the financial side of things, which I’m sure you know better than me, I only have my love for her. I can promise I’ll never hurt her again. I’ll protect her with my life. I want to give her the life she deserves.”

  Mr. Reyes begins to frown again. “This sounds suspiciously like you’re about to ask for my blessing.”

  God, not the way I saw this conversation going.

  Clearing my throat, I lift my chin. “I am.”

  “Well, in that case, you need to give me a moment.”

  I watch as Mr. Reyes takes his phone from his pocket, and for a second, I worry he’s going to call Fallon, but then I hear him say, “Mason, get your ass over here.” He dials another number. “Need you here.” A moment later. “I don’t care if you’re having dinner, Lake. Get your ass over to my house right now.”

  Fuck.

  Ooooh fuck.

  With Hunter and Hana’s father’s coming over, I know I’m in deep shit.

  When Mr. Reyes is done making the cal
ls to his best friends, he gets up and pours two tumblers of whiskey. Holding one out to me, he says, “You’re going to need it.”

  A couple of minutes later, Mr. Chargill and Mr. Cutler arrive, and as soon as my eyes land on Mr. Chargill, I hide a burst of laughter behind a fake cough. I wish I could take a photo so Hunter can see what his dad looks like right now.

  “Mason, what the fuck are you wearing?” Mr. Reyes asks.

  I take in the winter pajamas, a robe, and slippers.

  “This is the shit Kingsley makes me wear to bed.” Mr. Chargill glares at Mr. Cutler when he begins to laugh. “You asking for a beating? It’s not like I had time to change. Falcon said it was an emergency.”

  “I didn’t. I said to get your ass over here,” Mr. Reyes argues.

  “Could’ve fucking fooled me,” Mr. Chargill grumbles.

  Mr. Cutler comes to shake my hand. “How are you, Kao?”

  “Much better, sir. Thanks for asking.”

  Mr. Chargill’s eyes lock on me. “Your dad says your sight is recovering well?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “That’s good to hear.” Mr. Chargill turns his attention to Mr. Reyes. “So, why are we here?”

  Mr. Reyes gestures to me. “Kao’s about to ask us something.”

  “Oh?” Mr. Cutler smiles at me. “What do you need.”

  God have mercy on my soul if they end up killing me.

  After sending up the quick prayer, I climb to my feet. I don’t know who to look at, so I settle on making eye-contact with Mr. Reyes. “I’d like your blessing.” I suck in a deep breath. “I’m going to ask Fallon to marry me.”

  “Ooooh.” Mr. Cutler’s eyes widen, and then they shoot to Mr. Reyes.

  Mr. Chargill is the first to respond. “You don’t think you’re both a bit young?”

  I quickly shake my head. “I love her. Whether we get married now or in ten years, nothing’s going to change how I feel about her. I’m graduating in a couple of months, and we’ve talked about getting a house.”

  “You have?” Mr. Reyes murmurs, way too calm for my liking.

  “Yes, sir.” I swallow hard on the nerves that are grinding my gut to dust.

  Mr. Chargill takes a seat on one of the couches. “I have one question.”

  When Mr. Reyes sits down, I take a seat again next to Mr. Cutler.

  Mr. Chargill tilts his head, and he pins me with a deadly stare. “Where were you this past Christmas break?” He shakes his head. “My goddaughter was in a world of pain, and I don’t recall seeing you offering her any comfort.”

  I take in a deep breath, and after gathering my thoughts, I say, “I agree, I didn’t handle the situation well. Not at all. When I woke up, and I couldn’t see anything, I panicked.” Remember the fear and anger, I clasp my hands together. “When I learned Fallon got hurt, I lost it. I blamed myself, and I couldn’t live with the fact that I scarred the woman I love more than life itself.”

  “I went to visit the accident scene,” Mr. Reyes interrupts me. “I also saw the dashcam footage.”

  Dad mentioned it to me, but back then, I couldn’t see shit, so I forgot about the footage.

  Mr. Reyes gets up. “I have the footage here if you’d like to see it.”

  I don’t know where he’s going with this, so all I can do is nod.

  I wait as Mr. Reyes switches on the TV, and then he connects his phone to it. A moment later, the screen lights up, and it shows the road we were driving on.

  Instantly my muscles tighten.

  ‘Never,’ I hear myself say. ‘You’ll always be beautiful to me.’

  Then Fallon’s voice sounds up, ‘Even when I’m old and wrinkly?’

  I see the truck coming down the road at one hell of a speed, and my body goes ice cold as it heads right for us.

  Christ.

  ‘Shit,’ I hear the panic in my voice, and then the nose of my car swerves sharply to the right, and the next second, the sound of the truck slamming into my side of the vehicle vibrates through my body. The car rolls, and then it’s pushed into the field next to the road.

  ‘Starting 9-1-1 –’

  Mr. Reyes stops the footage, then looks at me. “Four seconds. That’s how much time you had to react, and you managed to turn the car so it wouldn’t be a head-on collision which could’ve killed you both.” His eyes lock on mine. “You took the full brunt of that hit, and it could’ve killed you. Still, you didn’t hesitate.”

  “You have my blessing,” Mr. Cutler murmurs from next to me. “I know Fallon will be safe with you.”

  “So,” Mr. Reyes says, “You pushed Fallon away because you felt guilty and you were blind?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Have you groveled to Fallon,” Mr. Chargill asks, a smirk pulling at his mouth.

  I let out a chuckle. “Quite a bit, but I’m not done groveling yet.”

  “Kao,” Mr. Reyes says to get my attention, “Can you promise to give my daughter the quality of life I’ve given her?”

  “I’ll always do my best to try and measure up to the standard you’ve set in her life,” I answer, meaning every word because I know how important Fallon’s parents are to her.

  “Well then,” Mr. Reyes climbs to his feet, and I instantly shoot up off the couch. He holds his hand out to me, “you have my blessing.”

  “Wait? That’s it?” Mr. Chargill interrupts us. “Am I the only one worried that they’re too young?”

  “Shut up, Mace,” Mr. Cutler snaps. “You proposed to Kingsley when she was nineteen.”

  “Fuck,” Mr. Chargill grumbles. “It’s just… Fallon’s one of our little girls.”

  Emotion washes over all their faces. Wanting to reassure them, I say, “Fallon’s my life. I’ll never stop working my ass off to deserve her.”

  “You better,” Mr. Chargill grumbles.

  “So…” Mr. Reyes asks him.

  “So what?”

  “Does Kao have your blessing?” Mr. Reyes asks, a little exasperated.

  “Oh. I guess so. The two of you already outvoted me.”

  “God, I pity the man who has to ask you for Aria’s hand in marriage,” Mr. Cutler mumbles.

  “You better have the paramedics on standby that day,” Mr. Chargill says.

  “For you having a heart attack or you beating the poor guy into a coma?” Mr. Reyes asks.

  “Probably both.”

  I struggle to keep the laughter in, just thankful I’m not the poor guy.

  Chapter 28

  FALLON

  I cling to Kao’s hand as we walk into Dr. Menard’s office. My heart is nothing but a fearful echo behind my ribs.

  As we reach reception, the lady smiles up at us. “Fallon Reyes?”

  “Yes.”

  “You can go through. Dr. Menard is waiting for you.”

  “Thank you.” I’m a second away from squeezing the life out of Kao’s poor hand as we walk down the short hallway.

  When we enter the room, Dr. Menard gets up from where he was sitting behind a desk. He gestures to an adjoining room. “Through there.”

  We step into the examination room, and I go take a seat.

  Dr. Menard comes to stand on my right and smiles down at me. “Are you ready?”

  No.

  Not in the least.

  I nod. “Yeah.”

  Kao crosses his arms over his chest, and his eyes are locked on mine as Dr. Menard pulls the tape from the stitches.

  I hear Dr. Menard breathe as he looks closely at the sutures. “Oooh, yes, they’re healing beautifully.” He stands back to make eye-contact. “I’m going to remove the stitches. You might feel some discomfort. Okay?”

  “Okay?” I take in a deep breath, and unable to stop myself, my hand reaches for Kao. He darts to my left and grips my fingers tightly with his.

  I shut my eyes tightly while Dr. Menard goes to work on my face and neck. My stomach tightens horribly.

  After a while, Dr. Menard's fingers brush over my cheek and neck. “I�
�m very happy. Like I said, we’ll do some laser therapy to minimize the scarring even more.”

  Slowly, I open my eyes. Dr. Menard holds something behind his back as he asks, “Are you ready?”

  I’ll never be ready.

  Kao moves closer to me, placing his other hand on my shoulder.

  “Nervous?” Dr. Menard asks. “Trust me. You’ll be happy.”

  Then he brings a mirror from behind his back, and the next second I’m staring at my reflection.

  Before my eyes can even focus, a sob bursts from me. Emotion tears through me, and I have to blink rapidly to see my skin.

  There are no angry gashes. No haphazard tears.

  There’s only one thin line running along my jaw that’s pink in color.

  “The laser therapy will take care of that little sucker,” Dr. Menard reminds me.

  I bring my trembling right hand to my face and brush my fingers over the soft skin.

  “I don’t know how you did it, but…” my voice disappears. I have to swallow a couple of times before I can say, “Thank you so much.”

  God, even if the thin scar remains, I can live with that.

  “Great. We’ll schedule the laser therapy for next week.”

  “Okay.” I finally manage to smile at the doctor who saved me from a life as a scarred woman.

  Dr. Menard looks at Kao. “I think you should take this beautiful woman out for a night on the town.”

  “Definitely,” Kao agrees, a broad smile on his face.

  I’m bursting with gratefulness as we leave Dr. Menard, and once we step outside the building, I turn and throw my arms around Kao’s neck. His arms instantly wrap around me, and lifting me off my feet, he hugs me tightly.

  “God, I’m so relieved,” I whisper in his ear.

  Kao presses a kiss to the side of my head, and when he begins to walk toward the car, still holding me against his body, I let out a burst of laughter.

  Reaching the car, he finally sets me down on my feet, then he frames my face, his touch gentle, and he presses a tender kiss to my mouth.

  Kao pulls back, and his eyes lock on mine. “Who loves you?”

  “You,” I grin at him, loving when he asks me that question. It’s become our special thing we do.