Savage Royals (Boys of Oak Park Prep #1) - Callie Rose Page 0,2
been tattooed there, but her voice softened as she sat down across from me. “I’ve been looking over your case, and I’m so sorry about your father. We’ll find you a good foster home for a few years, and—”
“What if I don’t want that?”
“Well, you’re only sixteen. You need at least two years under an adult’s custody before you’ll be able to take care of yourself. My job is to place you in—”
Her phone buzzed, an almost imperceptible noise. She turned it over to glance down at the screen and sighed. “I’m sorry, I should get this. I’ll be right back.”
I watched her walk out of the room and slumped back in my chair, my fingers twisting together nervously.
Two years?
I’d be stuck living with some randos who’d probably give even less of a shit about me than my dad. I’d heard all the horror stories of foster care. I didn’t want to go.
“Sorry about that.” Janet’s heels tapped across the floor as she returned a few minutes later. “Actually, I’m very glad I took that call.” Her perma-smile widened. “We won’t have to put you in foster care after all. Your relatives want to take you in.”
I blinked at her. “What… relatives?”
“Your grandparents,” she said, like it should be obvious. “They’re in a small city in California, and they just reached out to our offices. They’re willing to take custody of you; they want you to come and live with them.”
My jaw fell open. Was she serious? I’d never heard anything about relatives in California. My dad’s parents were dead, and I knew almost nothing about my mom’s side of the family.
Who the hell are these people?
“I don’t… have any family,” I stuttered. “Just my dad, and he’s gone. My mom died ages ago. I’ve never heard anything about grandparents.”
“Trust me, this is a good thing,” Janet said as she smiled at me again. “Family is better and more familiar—”
“How can they be familiar if I don’t know them?”
“Well, it’s better than being in a stranger’s home,” she said gently, but I could hear an edge creeping into her voice too. She was probably used to delinquents mouthing off at her, and she wasn’t going to stand for it. “They’re very wealthy, and they have the connections and resources to help you flourish. Trust me, this is a good thing.”
I didn’t trust her. I had a hard time trusting anyone. My dad had taught me that lesson, whether he’d meant to or not.
“Who are they?”
She glanced at her phone again. “The last name is Hildebrand. They appear to be very well known and respected in California. I’m sure you’ll be happy out there.”
I nodded slowly, trying to process her words.
It wasn’t like I had a choice. I needed somewhere to live, and even though I tried not to let it, a little spark of hope lit in my chest at the idea.
A family.
I’d always thought my dad and I were all alone, but the prospect of meeting people who were connected to me by blood pulled at something deep in my gut.
“Look.” Janet leaned forward, her lips pursing slightly. I recognized her tone as one adults used when they were about to “get real” with the kids. “I know this all seems scary and sudden, and I truly am sorry. It’s a lot to deal with on top of processing your dad’s death. But believe me, I’ve placed hundreds of children in foster homes and elsewhere, and I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt—the ones placed with family members almost always do better.”
Her phone buzzed again, and her gaze flicked down and back up, interrupting the rhythm of her prepared speech. Then her hand slid across the table to rest on mine.
“You’re being given a gift here, Talia. Take it.”
Chapter 2
LAX was fucking massive. I almost got run over by several people hustling to catch their flights as I made my way through the maze of bodies. When I finally reached the pick-up area, I blinked as I stepped outside into bright, warm sunshine.
“Talia,” a voice called.
I glanced up as a woman climbed out of a sleek town car. Her honey-brown hair was pulled up into a neat bun, not a single hair out of place. She wore a dress that hugged her body, the fabric light blue and soft. From a distance, she looked like she could be in her forties, though up close I could see the subtle signs of wrinkles and age.