Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
I had to drag myself out of bed the following morning. A bride-to-be should be happy, right? I was anything but happy. I lifelessly drew a bath and took off my clothes. I washed up, not even paying attention to what I was doing. I got out and got dressed, all without Danielle's help, and I forgot whether or not I'd conditioned my hair. I didn't really care. My future had just been snatched away from me by one very influential Richard Banning III.
And Louis – where did he fit in to all of this? I was so ready to dump Richard, but what exactly was in my heart for Louis? He made me laugh, he challenged me to think about what I wanted, and I knew he genuinely cared for me. And I desperately wanted to kiss him. Was I...in love with Louis? The idea seemed impossible. I mean, Louis was a great guy, but I couldn't expect anything to happen between myself and a...servant.
I grabbed my phone and called Veronica. When she answered, I didn't even say hello, I just blurted out, "I need you! Richard proposed!"
Her response was just as quick. "I'll be right there!"
She arrived within half an hour. She could see that my eyes were red and puffy, and there were bags under my eyes from the lack of sleep. I tossed and turned all night, unable to find rest.
"This is bad, huh?" She said with sincere sympathy in her voice.
"Yup. Not only did Richard propose, completely out of the blue, but I had finally decided that I was going to break up with him. I don't love Richard. At all! What am I going to do?"
"Well, your best option is probably to marry the jerk, enjoy the sex because damn! He is hot! Make him buy you all sorts of expensive crap, and live out your days screwing the pool boy. Just tell him that you and Louis are a package deal."
"Veronica!" I yelled. "This is serious!"
"I know, I know. I'm sorry. This really does suck. But here's the bright side – it's the 21st freakin' century! You don't have to submit to an arranged marriage. You're smart and powerful and you can do whatever the hell you want with your life."
"Yeah," I replied miserably. "And my parents will cut me off and send me to live in the subway tunnels."
"Whoa, that's depressing, girlfriend. It won't be that bad. They'll come around, trust me."
"What if they don't?" I whined.
"They will have to accept your decisions if you just make them, even without their consent. You just need to exercise your independence and stand up for yourself!"
"You sound like Louis."
"How is Pool Boy, by the way?"
I hesitated. Did I want to tell her everything or continue to deny that there was anything between us? I finally decided that I had to tell someone or I would explode. I threw myself backwards on my bed and cried, "I have it so bad for him!"
