“No way you didn’t,” Tania shrieked as she flung herself onto my bed, her eyes beaming with excitement.

I laughed hard, breathless, and still a little shy from the memories that hadn’t even cooled off yet. “Yes I did.”

Her jaw dropped. Then she pounced. “No you did not.” Before I could blink, she grabbed my hands, yanking me off the bed as we both jumped around like maniacs. “You whore!” she squealed.

“Shhh! My mom is downstairs!” I whispered, quickly closing the door.

Tania dropped onto the bed dramatically, crossing her legs like she was settling in for a movie. “Okay girl, start spilling right now. I want to hear everything, don't leave any details out.”

I pressed my palms together, laughing nervously. “No I’m not giving you the details, Tania, that’s weird.”

She gasped. “Weird? Did you just say weird, Bella? Bitch, this is literally the breaking news of the century. Your first ever bang bang and you want to keep it strictly Pg? Absolutely not. Start talking.”

I sighed, my cheeks heating instantly. “Well, after you left us, we got more drinks, and we talked. Along the line I had way too much to drink,” I began.

“You think?” she scoffed.

I rolled my eyes at her. “Then he suggested we go somewhere private.”

“And you said yes?” she asked, her voice going high-pitched like she couldn’t believe it.

“Well not at first, but later on I suggested it instead. Although deep down I wanted it to be his place.”

Her mouth fell open. “Isabella Morris!” Tania screamed, as she covered her mouth in fake horror. “You are a menace! An unpredictable, chaotic menace!”

We collapsed into laughter. “Hey,” I pointed at her, “you were the one who told me to loosen up and have fun!”

“And look how beautifully my words worked,” she said smugly, flipping her hair. “Maybe I should be a motivational speaker.”

I shook my head, still laughing. “This is all your fault you know.”

“Yes of course it is,” she said proudly. “And somehow you ended up getting laid, and not just with anyone, with the hottest guy in the club, so you’re welcome. Girl, You got the real deal, I’m so jealous right now.” She whined, as she positioned herself, placing her head in my lap.

I chuckled, as I played with her hair. “Okay. Spill it. I bet your night was great! So great you had to disappear on me.”

She blushed, as her hand went over her face. “Well, I met this guy. We got a few drinks, we talked and all, the sex was good, but I mean it could’ve been better.” She teased and laughed. I shook my head in disbelief, typical Tania.

“Okay Smartass. I know what you’re doing, but it’s not gonna work. Come on, I’m dying to know. Was he good? Like good good? Or ‘I regret everything’ kind of good?”

I covered my face. “Ewww Tania, I’m not about to dive into my first sexual experience with a total stranger by the way, just because you’re so interested in it, that’s gross.”

She shot up suddenly. “Don’t you dare deprive me of this. Have you forgotten? I was there when you had your first crush in seventh grade, I was there when you cried because Liam Benson rejected your love letter, and I was there when you swore to never date anyone, and just focus on your fictional men so, you owe me this.”

I groaned dramatically, burying my face in a pillow. “Okay fine,” I muttered. “But I’m not going to spill too much”

“That’s fine, I don’t mind,” she said, leaning in like she was about to taste forbidden tea.

“Well…” I swallowed, feeling my cheeks burn again. “He was an excellent kisser. Like superb.” Tania squealed so loud I had to smack her arm.

“And…” I hesitated, biting my lip as she leaned forward. “He knows how to work with his tongue and his lips,” I whispered quickly, before covering my face again.

“And?” She pressed further, as her eyes widened.

“And he’s…” I stopped, unable to form the words.

Tania narrowed her eyes. “Bella. Don’t make me shake it out of you.”

I chuckled. “And his fingers were absolutely insane, girl, don’t even get me started on what that cock can do. If I had to choose that as a meal, I wouldn’t mind having that for the rest of my life,” I immediately concluded, and collapsed on the bed.

Tania shrieked, as she rolled across the bed like she was possessed. “Oh my God! I absolutely cannot believe this. My sweet baby Bella had a wild night with a Greek god and she didn’t invite me to document it.” She crossed her arms dramatically. “Okay rate it on a scale of one to ten?”

“I’d say twenty.”

Tania let out a scandalized scream. “Jesus Christ! You nasty, nasty girl. Who are you? And what have you done with my best friend? Damn girl.” She dramatically cleaned her ears, to be sure what she heard actually came from me. As I burst into laughter.

“Who would have thought a day like this would come, a day when I will see you talk dirty, let your imagination run wild. I already concluded that such things were possible in your audiobooks, and dark romance novels. But seeing you right now, I’m so proud of you. That proves that my work here is done.” she added, proudly grabbing my hands. “I love this new version of you. Don’t you try to get rid of her.” She sharply said, pointing to my chest.

“I won’t,” I laughed. “To be honest I also love this new Bella. But seriously, what’s up with the fake name though? That completely caught me off guard.”

She snorted. “Duh. It’s called club code. A lot of people don’t use their real names in places like that. That way you get to have fun with people, and you don’t have to feel like you’re being watched or judged. It’s safe, simple and smart.”

I blinked. “That actually makes sense. I never would have thought of that.”

“Yeah obviously it does. Your book smart, I’m street smart, remember? And that’s why we’re the perfect combo.” We both laughed, and for a moment I forgot about everything else. Then my mom called from downstairs. “Girls! Dinner is ready!”

I groaned instantly. “Tania, please stay for dinner. Adrian is here and I really don’t have the energy to deal with him right now.”

She pouted sympathetically. “I wish I could babe, but my mom’s been blowing up my phone. If I don't finish that errand she’ll literally show up here in full demon mode.”

We both froze at the thought. Yeah… her mom was really scary. We headed downstairs, and as soon as we stepped into the dining room, my mood dropped. Adrian and my mom walked out of the kitchen together, laughing. His hand was around her waist. I nearly gagged.

“Bye Miss Morris!” Tania called sweetly. “I’m sorry I can’t stay for dinner. Maybe next time!”

“And hello, Mr. Wolfe!” she added with a wink before darting out the door.

“Tania’s always running,” my mom said, as she laughed shaking her head. “Someone would think she has an empire to run that constantly needs her attention.”

Adrian turned toward me, giving me his signature perfect smile, the one that never reached his eyes. “How are you doing, Bella?” he said warmly. “I’m sorry I couldn’t make it to your graduation yesterday, but your mom’s been talking about it non-stop. Congratulations once again.”

He handed me a glossy bag. “Although I hope you’ll accept this little gift from me.”

I stared at the bag, then at my mom. “Adrian, it’s not a big deal. You didn’t have to—”

“Bella,” my mom cut in sharply. “Don’t be rude, and just accept it. You know Adrian will do anything to make you happy, so why don’t you do the same by accepting his gift.”

I forced a breath out. “Thank you.” I opened the bag and my heart stuttered as I couldn’t believe what I found inside. The sold-out headphones I’d been wanting for, for months, a book by my favorite author that is yet to be released and a small velvet box, which contained a necklace that gleamed softly, and had my name engraved on it.

I swallowed. “Thank you,” I said again, smiling faintly this time.

His smile softened.“I wasn’t really sure what you liked but with the help of your mom, I was able to come up with a few.”

My mom beamed, as she leaned into him, then he squeezed her hand gently. “Thank you baby.” She responded as she stared at him with love sick eyes.

“Gross,” I said as I looked away. “Is this what I have to deal with everyday when they get married?” I muttered to myself. I ignored them, went back to my food and it was quiet for a while before my mom decided to break the silence.

“We have something to tell you.” She said, her eyes beaming, as she cleared her throat.

I looked up warily, already expecting the worse. She and Adrian smiled, exchanged a look, then, in perfect unison. “We’re getting married in a month.”

“In a month?” The words echoed in my head like someone had slammed a metal door shut and locked me inside. “In a month?” That wasn’t a wedding date, that was a countdown.

My mom exchanged a quick, nervous glance with Adrian, while he smiled at me like he always did, which somehow irritated me more.

“Mom, what is this? What are you talking about?” I demanded, as I set my fork down on my plate.

“Cariño por favor, cálmate—”

“No, Mom.” The chair screeched loudly as I shifted forward. “Don’t tell me to calm down. Are you even listening to yourself?”

Her brows knit together. “Bella—”

“How can you already be getting married to a man you have barely just started dating? You’ve been with him for what—a year? Less than a year, technically! And you think that’s enough time to suddenly rush into marriage with him? Who does that?” My voice shook, as I demanded. “This is insane!”

“Bella, please calm down,” Adrian said softly, “I understand you’re upset, but if you could just—”

“Stay out of this.” I snapped, pointing a finger at him without even meaning to. “Do not tell me to calm down, and do not act like you’re my father, because you’re not, and you won’t ever be.”

“Bella!” My mom’s voice cracked sharply like a whip. “Stop that immediately. I will not have you speak to him that way. Where are your manners?”

I rolled my eyes hard, and her face twitched with anger. Adrian gently touched her hand under the table, wordlessly telling her it was okay, but that just poured gasoline on the fire burning in my chest.

“Let me ask you something.” I said, folding my arms, and leaning back on the chair with my heart pounding. “What if the case was reversed? What if I were the one telling you I wanted to marry someone I’ve only known for a year? Would you let me do that?”

“Mi amor, that’s different you know that,” my mom pleaded quietly.

I scoffed. Of course it was different. “Because you’re an adult right? And you think you ‘know best.’ while I’m just the child whose life you think you can uproot whenever you want and expect me to smile and go through with it.”

Then I held her gaze steady, unblinking. “Be honest with me mom. Do you even love him? Or are you with him because of his money, because of what he can give us?”

And then she snapped. Her expression darkened so fast I didn’t even have time to breathe. And a slap landed on my face. My face whipped to the side, stinging, burning, as I held my cheek, staring at her, in horror. Adrian shot up halfway from his chair, but he froze, caught between us.

“Don’t you dare, Bella,” my mom hissed. “Don’t you dare to speak to me that way, I raised you better than this. I don’t know what’s come over you lately, but you will stop acting like you were brought up with no manners.”

I swallowed hard as she continued.

“We are only telling you this because you deserve to know, not because we need your opinion. I am getting married to Adrian one month from now, and there is nothing you or anyone can do to stop that. So get that into your head and stop acting like a spoiled brat.”

I pushed back from the table so fast the legs screeched loud enough to make her flinch. Still holding my cheek, I stood up, stormed out of the dining area, stomped up the stairs, grabbed my hoodie, sunglasses, phone, and a book, and marched right back down again, ignoring her voice as she shouted my name.

I slammed the door behind me and felt the cool evening air hit my face. I didn’t stop walking, as I headed to the library. This was my safe place, the place I went to whenever I needed to unwind, the one place no one expected anything from me.

“You’re back again?” the librarian teased as soon as she saw me. Her warm smile settled something inside me. “Are you dying to get rid of me already?” I said, managing a small laugh.

She chuckled. “I wish I could but I can’t.”

“Well, I just came to return this book and pick up a new one.” I confirmed, giving the book to her.

She raised a brow. “Mhm. And you’re sure this is not about avoiding home again.”

I snorted. “Is it that obvious?”

She chuckled as she scanned the book. “No one has beaten your record of most borrowed books in months.”

I grinned and wandered off to the aisle that always called me. I ran my fingers along the shelves, looking for something that felt right, something that would fit into the mess of my life. Then I saw it, and as soon as I reached for it, another hand brushed against mine. “Oh sorry” we both said at the same time, and then laughed.

And I looked up to see the owner of those delicate hands, and just then my breath caught in my mouth. He was beautiful. Not in a model, perfect-hair kind of way, but in a quiet, soft, boy-next-door kind of way. He had his glasses on, messy dark hair, warm brown eyes and a shy smile.

“You can take it,” he said, giggling as he stepped back slightly, adjusting his glasses. “Ladies first.”

“No, no, it’s fine,” I said quickly. “You saw it first, I can come back another time for it.”

“Hey, come on I insist.”

Something about the gentleness in his voice made my shoulders loosen, so I nodded and reluctantly took the book. We took a walk in the park, talking about our favorite authors, favorite books, hobbies, and surprisingly we had a lot of things in common. When he asked for my number, I didn’t hesitate, as he promised to give me a call the following day. I dreaded going back home, but I had no choice. By the time I got home, they had gone to bed, so I quietly went up to my room.

One Month Later

It’s been a month since Brian and I started dating. A month of being over the moon, a month of good laughs, love and everything else. He was my first boyfriend and now that I’m about to leave, it hurts so bad. He tried to hide it, but I saw the way his smile wavered when I told him we were moving.

Tania, on the other hand, stayed with me the night before. We cried like people who would never see each other again, we hugged like we were being separated by different continents, and she swore she’d visit every weekend. The wedding between my mom and Adrian was the talk of the town. It was extravagant, lavish, splendid—you name it. Attended by the crème de la crème of society, to me it just felt like a competition where rich people get to show off their money, their jewelry and their fake laughs. I wonder how I survived it, but now the day I was dreading has finally come.

Vivian had been over the moon all morning, we weren’t taking much, just our personal things since Adrian already had everything we might need. When we got to his house, he came out to welcome us, as the butler helped us with our things. The maids greeted my mom and I as we walked past them, and as soon as I stepped in, it looked like something pulled out of a billionaire romance novel. The shiny marble floor, crystal chandeliers sat perfectly hung in the middle, a staircase that curved like a runway. My jaw fell open as I tried to wrap my head around the fact that all this seemed surreal, and I still couldn’t believe this was now my new home.

And just then Adrian called out. “Jeremy! Can you please come downstairs for a moment?”

He didn’t respond, but then a door swung open upstairs.I looked up and my entire soul left my body. Jeremy’s steps were slow, heavy, and controlled. He wore a sleeveless shirt which clinged to his body, revealing those perfectly sculpted abs, as sweat glistened on his skin. A towel hung over his shoulders, his hair was messy, and some stuck to his forehead. A water bottle dangled from his hand as he took a sip, by the time he had finally descended the stairs. Every step he took made my heart thud painfully.

Adrian smiled proudly. “Vivian, Bella meet my son, Jeremy. Jeremy, Vivian and Bella.”

My throat closed, and my vision blurred for a second as Jeremy stood a few feet in front of me. And that’s when he looked at me.

“Oh my God…” I whispered, staring at him in horror. It was him. The man who had ruined me, standing in my new home.