PROLOGUE
DELLA
Life is made up of a series of lies.
Love? It’s a fairytale some person made up so they didn’t have to face the cold, hard fact that we are all alone. You come into this world alone and you leave it alone. Loneliness, it’s the one the thing we fear most. It means you’re forgotten, you’ve been rejected, or you’re overlooked.
Little girls are told fairy tales of how a prince will come along to sweep them up into their loving arms. From a young age, they are taught that their purpose is to belong. They have to have a family, a husband, children – without this, they are failures.
Little boys are told stories of firemen, policemen, the brave souls who will overcome any evil. They are taught that their purpose is to be the man of the house, to protect, to provide – if they’re not able to do this, they aren’t men.
They’re all lies that most people believe. We create such unnecessary pain for ourselves. You feel like a failure because no one loves you. You only exist if there’s someone who sees you. Your life only has worth if you’re living for someone else.
That restlessness you feel? It’s your soul crying out to be set free from all the deceit you’ve been forced to believe.
Once in a while, someone will break free from the norm society has created. I want to be one of those people. I want to be different. I want to break every damn rule society has ever made for us.
It will mean that I’m alive and not just another sheep wandering aimlessly through life.
CHAPTER 1
DELLA
“Don’t look now, but they just walked in,” the red head whispers excitedly as I start to clear the table.
Rameses, the bar slash diner where I’ve worked since my first year of college, is always crawling with students.
I place the empty plates on top of each other as her blonde friend looks over her shoulder.
“Fuck, he’s so hot. I’d give anything to be screwed by Rhett.”
At first, I used to get embarrassed when I heard people talk like that, but after being at college for almost three years, there’s very little that shocks me now.
There’s not much in the way of dating where I’m from. Hell, I had to go to Polk County High School because Saluda only has an elementary school. Besides the random adventurer traveling through and the summer wave of tourists, the meager population of around seven hundred didn’t cater much for dating material.
I glance in the direction of the door and watch as a group of guys walk in. I don’t know them that well. I’ve heard rumors about them, that they’re known as the Screw Crew. Every girl wants to be screwed by them and every guy wants to be one of them. It’s really stupid.
They take a seat in my section, and the one with black hair grins at the blonde sitting at the table I’m busy clearing. He bites his bottom lip and winks at her. Damn, even I have to admit that’s hot. I might not date but just like any warm-blooded girl, I appreciate a hot guy when I see one.
The blonde shrieks excitedly and jumps up. “By tomorrow, my name will be on Rhett’s screwed list.”
The red head throws some money on the table and follows her friend over to where the guys are. The blonde slides onto the guy’s lap, immediately kissing him as if there’s no tomorrow. The university should have making out as a sport. I swear half the students would qualify for the Olympics.
People don’t behave like that back home. Sue, the owner of the Mom ? Pop diner I used to work at, would be chasing them out the door. After Mom passed Sue took us in. It’s because of Sue that I’m able to study for my degree in Graphic Design. Without her generosity, Jamie and I would’ve been living on the streets. I had been working at her diner for about three months when Mom passed away after her long struggle with cancer. Sue let me borrow money so I could lay Mom to rest. She also took us in. She’s old and hard as nails, but she’s also the only one who cared about us.