Prologue

My gaze is laser-focused on one man as I jog toward the quad. Fifteen minutes ago, if someone had asked me what Jasper Hamilton was to me, I would"ve told them my absolute everything. Now? I don"t even know who he is. The man I spent nights wrapped up in, weekends making breakfast in my little dorm room with, he doesn"t seem to be here anymore. Those whiskey brown eyes aren"t warm and inviting, instead they"re the eyes of a fucking liar.

Once I get to him, he turns, a sexy little smile on his face. "Hey, baby."

If this were any other day, I"d melt into his arms, and let my stomach flutter at the endearment. "Don"t baby me." I put my hands on his chest and press hard.

It causes him to take a few steps back to retain his balance, but he manages. "What the fuck, Daisy?"

"You should know." I put my hand on my hip, face set in stone as I gaze at him. I"m going to be strong and not let him get away with this as easily as he was able to slip into my life.

Perfectly arched eyebrows that I"ve always been jealous of bunch together. "I have zero idea what you"re talking about, Daisy. Would you care to fill me in?"

The face that I"ve grown to love, to care about so much isn"t the man I thought I knew. It"s not the one that I thought I was building a future with. Definitely not the man who deserves the hours I"ve spent writing our names together, replacing my last name with his. "This." I pull my phone out, scroll to the photos and videos that were posted to Instagram this morning, in the wee hours.

"That"s not what you think." He argues, his Adam"s apple working up and down. He gestures between the two of us. "We"re not exclusive. We"ve never discussed it, have we?"

"Not exclusive? I"m sorry, I told you I love you. How can that not be exclusive?" My stomach drops, I can see where this is going.

He lifts his chin, eyes shining in defiance. "I never told you that I love you back, Daisy. You know the deal with me."

And I do. I always have. He and I have had a flirtation since we were pre-teens, had our first kiss together as teens, and then spent the rest of our high school years eyeing each other in the hallways. It wasn"t until college that we decided to make a go of it. A year and a half ago today, to be exact. "I did." I firm up my chin to keep it from wobbling, because I know it will. It"ll betray what I want to appear to be a brave facade. "But I was willing to accept the little glimpses of the man I knew was inside you. You"d give me a small taste of who I know you can be. Just enough so I would let my guard down and think I can save this man. I can show him what love is, and I can be the person who brings him out of the darkness."

"I never asked you to do that." He says the words with a deadly quiet air. A mic drop in the middle of this serious moment. "I never asked you to save me, Daisy. People have been trying to save me my entire life, and nobody"s been able to do it yet. What makes you think you"re different?"

My firm chin wobbles and I lose the battle with the tears I"ve been fighting. "Because you were sweet to me. You told me your dreams, right?" I realize how thin this sounds.

"Yeah, any guy is gonna be sweet to you to get a piece of your ass, Daisy. Those dreams I told you about? They weren"t true. They were a means to an end."

The group that has crowded around us gasps as those words leave his mouth. My hand flies toward his face, palm slaps hard against his cheek. His head moves as if it"s on a swivel, and his whiskey brown eyes meet mine. Working his jaw, he glares, and I glare back. "Is this who you think they"d want you to be?" I ask quietly, meaning the parents he lost as a child.

"Fuck you, Daisy." His jaw tightens even further.

"So I wasn"t important enough for you to stay faithful, but I was important enough to listen to your drunken ramblings about losing your parents. I see how it is, Jasper."

"You see nothing. Don"t fuckin" flatter yourself."

That hurts, but I won"t let him see. Setting my jaw this time, I glare, before I spit out the next words. "I hope you step on a Lego, fall, and hit your head so hard you forget who the fuck I am, Jasper Hamilton."

The group gathered around us oohhhs as I turn away from him, and walk away, head held high. I don"t let the facade fall until I get to my dorm room. I hurry in and collapse against the back of the door, tears falling like a torrential downpour against my cheeks. I collapse into myself, sobbing for the girl who gave her heart too freely, and the woman who thought this was a once in a lifetime type of love.

There"s a gentle knocking at the door. Kara"s soft voice. "Daisy. It"s me and Alexis. Will you let us in? We saw and heard what happened. Please let us help you."

I fumble with the door, opening it just enough for them to come in. When I do, they immediately take me in their arms, holding me tightly. "I didn"t know he could be that cold," I sob.

"I didn"t, either." Alexis, pushes my hair out of my face. "And I"ve known him most of my life. He"s had some hard times that changed him."

"We all have," I argue. "His parents dying had an effect on the entire town. I remember all of us kids were worried our parents would die just like his had. We mourned them, and we worried about him. He just balled all of that concern up and threw it right back in my face. I don"t know what I"m going to do," I cry.

Alexis hugs me tightly. "You"re going to lean into what you"re feeling right now. Then you"re going to channel the badass bitch who just told this man you hope he steps on a Lego and live your best life."

Giggles work up from my chest into my throat, and eventually all of us are laughing, almost hysterically. Even in my sadness I realize how lucky I am, and I know I"ll count these women as my friends forever.