Fiftysix - Seven Rue Page 0,2

from downstairs.

I liked her.

Ever since Mom decided she didn’t wanna be part of the family anymore, Dad decided that instead of being sad, he could look for a new woman who wouldn’t leave.

Della was that woman, and I was happy for them.

Still, her way of living and her beliefs weren’t exactly my cup of tea.

She was a strict Christian, and no way I could keep living in this house if she’d find out I didn’t just call her husband daddy.

“Five minutes!” I called back, looking at myself in the mirror and brushing through my hair before putting it up into a high, messy bun.

I quickly stepped into the shower, and after only a few minutes, I was out again to dry my body and put on my pajamas.

I looked innocent.

Like a wallflower who’d rather hide in every possible situation.

Thing was, I had to act all innocent.

For Dad’s sake.

And, well…also Della’s.

Dad was once the mayor of this town, and God forbid his sweet daughter would ever turn into what her mother turned into.

Selfish, rude, and always up to no good.

Definitely had my mother’s traits when it came to being naughty, but my family or the public didn’t have to know that.

But I didn’t want to do what my father did either.

Politics were never my thing, and I was okay with ordering men around, but not a whole town.

Perks of being his daughter were the big house and garden that came with it, but being seen as someone who could potentially run this town someday wasn’t what I aimed for.

Not sure what I wanted to become after college, but for now, I was studying biology.

Because, well…I liked human bodies, and everything that came with them.

“Valley!” I heard my dad’s voice call out, and I snapped out of my trance quickly.

“I’m coming!” I called out, walked out of the bathroom to get my phone from my nightstand and then walking downstairs and into the dining room.

“Smells good in here. Indian?” I asked, knowing Della liked to recreate recipes from all over the world.

“Malaysian, to be exact,” Dad said as he poured himself a glass of red wine.

“I finally used all those spices I got for my birthday, and I think it turned out pretty good,” Della said enthusiastically.

“It definitely looks good,” I told her, then sat down on the other side of her while Dad sat at the head of the table.

“Thank you. Try it with this bread.”

“Did you make this yourself as well?”

“Oh, no. I bought the bread. You know I’m not good at baking,” she said with a soft laugh.

I smiled and filled my plate with a little bit of everything.

All that dirty talk made me hungry.

“Have you decided on the food for tomorrow, Dad?”

He nodded and after taking a bite of his bread with rice and some of the chicken on it, he looked at me and said, “Finger food. Seems appropriate for a 55th birthday party.”

Agreed.

“Sounds good to me. And who have you all invited?”

I didn’t like most of his political friends. They liked to rub their amazing lives into your face, even though Dad’s was just as great.

I also disliked their daughters and sons. Stuck up private schoolers who talked too much about how they’d someday run for president.

Would be funny to see what they’d say if I told them what I did in my free time after classes.

“Some of my friends from my early workplaces and your cousins will be here too. It’s been a while since you’ve seen them.”

True, but that didn’t mean it was necessary.

But then, it was Dad’s birthday after all, and I couldn’t just hide in my room and stream my naked body to a guy who pays me to see me finger myself.

“Oh, and your friend, Riggs will be here too!” Della announced happily.

“Riggs? Really?”

Why, that was a person I was excited to see.

Riggs was only a year older than Dad, but at fifty-six, he sure knew what to do to keep in shape.

“Oh, yes. He moved back into town last week. I forgot to tell you, Val.”

Riggs was a close family friend, and he even tried to talk some sense into my mother before she took off and ran away.

He was a good man, though he always seemed so lonely.

Don’t even think about it, the angel on my shoulder said, whereas the devil just grinned.

I puckered my lips and tried to hold back a smile. “Does he still live in the same house as before?” I asked.

“Think so. Anyway,” Dad said,