got her into Bentley U. Everything about her was about the creation of something beautiful. It was webbed into her existence for everybody to see it in how she walked, talked, and acted. The business world would eat her alive the second she stepped into it regardless of who she was related to—or exactly because of it. Tight skirts, high heels, and cleavage-revealing shirts wouldn’t save her from that scrutiny like it did for some successful women because her blood was considered tainted from the scandal.
“Perhaps it’s a good idea to start planning what would make you happy instead.”
Her eyes narrowed in on me. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Standing, once I knew my dick wasn’t tenting my pants, I grabbed my empty coffee mug and brought it to the sink. “Nothing, Della. I just know what you want to do, and it’s nothing you planned with your father.”
“That isn’t true.”
I simply hummed, not offering a verbal reply. Her chair scraped back, and she appeared next to me, her lips pinched down. “It’s not true,” she repeated.
One of my shoulders lifted. “Fine. It isn’t true then. What do I know? I only spend nearly every day with you.” There was an edge to my tone that passed disbelief, which I knew she could pinpoint easily.
“I get it, okay?” Her tone was softer, quieter than mine. “You’re trying to make a point. I get it. That doesn’t mean I want to believe it.”
Which point, little Della? my eyes asked hers when I turned my head.
The one we both avoid, hers said back.
I straightened when she set her full cup next to me. “Thank you for the coffee, but I should get back to my place.”
Rolling my neck, I reached for my phone to call Dallas, only for her to shake her head. “I already texted Ren. He’ll be here in a few minutes.”
My nostrils flared.
“Don’t start,” she whispered. “He’s all I have, Theo, whether you like it or not. He’s a good person.”
My open glare wasn’t lost on her.
I wanted to tell her she was wrong. She had me too, we both knew it. But the second those words left my mouth it would change everything. It’d mean more than an innocent declaration of family—of familiarity that we were accustomed to over the years.
She didn’t need that.
I didn’t either.
Not after what I did a year ago.
So, I let her leave.
Chapter Three
Della
The mirror is not the enemy.
I repeated that to myself at least three more times before walking over to the shower and turning it on. The steam would do its job with time, fogging the glass before I peeled off the clothes that hid what I struggled seeing. Some days were better than others, but I could feel the edge of a relapse forming as anxiety bubbled in the pit of my stomach. Truth was, I didn’t hate my body. Not anymore. I learned to like it with time and therapy, but it didn’t change the days that made me see my imperfections highlighted in my reflection whenever I passed it.
It took months after starting therapy before I could turn my head when walking past storefronts to see what graced the windows staring back. A girl too thin who felt too large, worried about what the media would say when pictures floated around, or when people would turn and whisper at formal events. I would never be cured from the thoughts that plagued my mind whenever I went clothes shopping and found clothing too snug or too loose. There would always be faults—cellulite and stretch marks and things my eyes narrowed in on with an embarrassing amount of obsession. There would be days when I couldn’t fight the urge to loathe a piece of me that didn’t deserve the kind of self-hate I’d inflicted when counting my calories, then eventually my ribs when they showed because of how badly I treated myself.
But I tried and that was what mattered.
Running my hand on the piece of ripped paper with elegant scroll I’d taped onto the edge of the mirror, I took a deep breath and forced my gaze on my almost naked complexion, half hidden by the steam on the glass. Be better.
The shower I took was longer than normal, and I knew my aunt would be displeased considering I’d be undoubtedly late for our Sunday brunch. I, however, didn’t have enough energy to care. I knew my limits and needed the time to myself to prepare for everything that came with