Total pages in book: 20
Estimated words: 18480 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 92(@200wpm)___ 74(@250wpm)___ 62(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 18480 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 92(@200wpm)___ 74(@250wpm)___ 62(@300wpm)
My mom lets out a small gasp when she sees it. “It’s beautiful.” It really is.
“It’s Petal.”
My little pet.
5
Petal
“I owe you big time,” I tell my best friend as I unpack my belongings. There was no way I could stay at school.
I let the administrators know of my plans of leaving. They couldn’t stop me. I was eighteen and had the credits I needed for my diploma. My only problem is how long it will be until they reach out to the Valentinus family. It’s inevitable. Secrets never stay that way. More so when Besly Prep would do anything for the Valentinuses to keep them happy.
The school had a small meltdown when I said I was leaving. They thought it was something they’d done. I did my best to reassure them it had nothing to do with the school. In fact, as soon as I’m able to access more of my trust, I have plans to donate to the school, in the form of scholarships for other girls.
The school is incredible, and I want people of all walks of life to get a chance to experience it. Not only the people that have money. I understand how privileged I’ve been and hope to give other young women the same opportunity.
Besly was there for me in a time I really needed them. I knew I couldn't stay with my uncle after the accident. It would have been torture to look at his face that so closely resembled my father’s every day. I hadn’t been emotionally strong enough to withstand that. The city had been raw to me at the time. Everywhere I went reminded me of the life I had before. Of how happy I’d been and how in the blink of an eye it was taken away.
My whole family was trying to heal, and the staff at Besly along with other girls there let me lean on them. I’ll always be grateful for them. There is really something to having a school that is all female. Everyone bonded on different levels. There were no fights over boys or stupid drama. It was in a way a family at times. It gave me stability and a sense of home when I needed it the most.
“I know you’re good for the money.” Christy laughs. No one asked me a question when I slipped her black AmEx across the counter at the hotel. This is technically the first time I’ve done anything of this caliber on my own. I’d been relieved that I hadn’t run into any roadblocks so far, knowing there are going to be plenty on the road ahead of me.
Christy is helping me get a head start. I knew I had to be smart and careful about how I went about this whole thing. If I started filling up my credit card with charges and making withdrawals from my accounts, Valen would have quickly found out. I needed a minute to get my footing before he tried to talk me into going back. I’m not ready to tell him I’m pregnant. Not yet. I don’t think I can face him at all right now. He would know something was off, and it would only be a matter of time before I folded like a cheap chair and spilled everything to him.
Once I get my place together, he’ll see just because he knocked me up it doesn’t mean we have to get married. Even if I want that more than anything in the world, I don’t want it this way. I would never make him be with me. Especially if he’s in love with my own damn cousin. That shit hurts. I was sure out of everyone, Valen could see through her beauty and into the rottenness that lives at her core.
I want what my parents had. The way they loved each other made me crave to have the same. It hurt to lose them both, but I’m not sure how one would have fared without the other. The two of them were a team in everything. I would roll my eyes at the way my father couldn’t keep his hands off my mom. As a little girl, it grossed me out while at the same time knowing I’d want my own husband to be the same with me.
“I have set up a few appointments for a realtor and a doctor. I already know I’m pregnant, but I want to make sure that everything is okay. And I’m doing the things I’m supposed to be doing.”
“One of my cousin's husbands is a realtor. I can have one of them reach out to you,” she offers.
“I might do some soft looking around myself. See what is out there before my appointment.” The quicker I find something, the closer I’ll be to telling Valen the truth.