1. Audrey

CHAPTER 1

Audrey

O nce Upon a Time…

I’d always dreamed about those words. Thought that one day, it would be the start of my story, and they’d be meant for me. That I’d be the girl in a glittering dress, with the man she loved standing in front of her with a bouquet of pink roses. So, I’d spent my whole life hoping and praying for my happily ever after. Imagining it like a dream.

But life wasn’t a fairytale.

Because I was just Audrey Rose Ashford, your typical college student. Sorority girl, lover of all things pink, and a theater kid. I wouldn’t get my perfect fairytale ending. Maybe that was okay. Life would still go on, just like it always had. True love or not, I was chasing after my dreams, the life I wanted so desperately.

“Good morning, Sleeping Beauty,” my sister, Ella, called, opening the blinds to the window in our shared room.

I groaned, throwing my pillow at her instead of moving. “Five more minutes.”

She clicked her tongue. “It’s Saturday.”

“Yeah, and?” I sat up, brushing my hair behind my ears as I narrowed my eyes at her. “Saturdays are for sleeping in.”

“Did you forget what we promised we’d do this weekend?” She quirked an eyebrow at me, popping her hand on her hip.

“Yes…?” Honestly, I had. Between classes and sorority activities, I’d almost forgotten that Halloween was creeping up on us.

“You really are exhausted, aren’t you?” Ella gave me that look—that older sister, I’m disappointed in you look— because even if she was only thirty minutes older than me, she was still the older, more responsible twin. I loved it, and I hated it simultaneously. “We’re supposed to finish our costumes.”

“Oh. Right!” Duh. We’d picked out the fabric last month on a whim of a shopping trip, and I’d fallen in love. Though that wasn’t hard, considering it was pink and sparkly, my two favorite things.

I was convinced anything could be fixed with a bit of glitter.

Halloween was next week. Which meant an entire weekend full of parties and the best excuse to dress up. One I wouldn’t be turning down. “Any chance we can get coffee before we start?”

“Already arranged.” She pulled a cup from behind her back, brandishing it towards me.

“You’re my favorite sister ever.” Ignoring the cup, I flung my arms around her neck.

“I’m your only sister.”

“Semantics.” Grabbing my cup of coffee, I sipped on it, letting the caramel flavor pool on my tongue. After a quick shower and some caffeine, I’d definitely be ready for the day.

My twin was in a costume design program at Castleton University, which meant she made costumes for school, too. Though thankfully, she didn’t mind an extra sewing project or two. It worked out for me because I couldn’t sew to save my life. I’d tried a few times, but each project had only ended up in a shredded mess.

It was better that I stuck to the things I was good at.

Twisting my hair up into a clip, I blew my bangs off my forehead and went to the closet to change out of my pajamas. Our shared closet was full of pastel shades, though there was more pink and blue than anything else.

I was a sucker for all things pink, and I might have had a slight shopping addiction. Ella didn’t complain, though, benefiting from our overflowing closet.

After a quick shower and pulling on a pink Pi Rho Sigma crewneck with leggings, I came back to our room to find Ella already hard at work on her sewing machine. All the pattern pieces were already cut out, and she’d started constructing the bodice pieces last week.

She bit her lip in concentration as she fed the fabric through the machine.

“Can I help with anything?” I asked, fiddling with my fingers.

She threw a mostly finished top in my direction. “Want to rhinestone this?”

“Hell yes.”

What I said before about glitter? Double that for rhinestones.

As far as I was concerned, the more sparkle, the better.

We looked perfect. Looking at us in the mirror, I couldn’t help but smile. For years, we’d always done matching costumes. This year, however, I was a pink witch, and Ella had designed a princess costume for herself. One she still hadn’t put on, even though it was Halloween weekend and we had a party to get to.

“What do you think?” I asked, both of us inspecting Ella’s makeup and hair in the mirror. If sewing and creating was her talent, makeovers were mine. I’d loved makeup ever since I was little playing with my Barbies, and now my friends always asked me to do theirs.

“I swear, you’re my Fairy Godmother,” Ella laughed, touching her cheeks. “Your transformations are like magic .”

I looked down at my costume, twirling my hips so the dress would flounce out. “Well, you made me this , so I guess you’re mine as well.”

“The perfect pair,” Ella said, a smile on her face.

Laughing, I poked her in the shoulder. “Come on, go get dressed! It’s getting late.”

The party hadn’t even started yet, but I was way too excited.

My twin rolled her eyes at me, unzipping her Castleton University sweatshirt and sliding her leggings off.

“No one gets there when parties start, anyway,” Ella grumbled, picking up her dress and pulling it on over her hips before taking her bra off. “Zip me up?”

I nodded, and once Ella had her silver heels on, she turned to me. “Happy?”

“You used to dream about these parties, you know.” I still loved them. Seeing friends, socializing, and getting compliments on my outfits. It might have been shallow, but they made me feel good, so no complaints here.

“Dreams change.” Ella huffed out.

My voice was quiet when I responded, “Come on, not all guys are like that. You know it.” She’d had a rough experience last year walking in on a guy cheating on her, and ever since, had been focusing more on classes instead of having fun. Tonight, I wanted her to let loose and forget about that. She was a catch, and anyone who didn’t see that was an idiot .

“Finishing touch,” I murmured, gently placing the tiara in Ella’s bun. “An outfit fit for a princess.”

She looked perfect. We both did. I loved the fluffy pink skirt on mine, the way it fanned out around me as I twirled, and even my pink witch hat.

“Shall we?” Ella asked, linking her arm through mine.

I grinned at my twin. “Heck yeah. Let’s go!”

Heading out of our room, we walked arm in arm down the stairs of our sorority house.

While we didn’t usually go to the Delta Sig fraternity’s parties, I’d wanted a change of scenery.

Mostly because I didn’t want to run into my ex, and I knew exactly what circles he ran in. I scrunched up my nose at the thought.

“What?” Ella asked, poking me in the arm.

I shook my head. “Nothing. Just glad our street’s a little quieter.” Honestly, the fraternity houses on the weekend were a constant barrage of pulsing music. The sorority house was a few blocks away, giving us the precious silence we needed so I could sleep.

Sometimes I joked that my favorite hobby was sleeping, but I was definitely grumpier when I didn’t get my full eight hours of sleep every night. Ten hours? Bliss.

Ella bit her lip, rocking on her strappy silver heels. “Are you sure about this?”

“Of course—” I grinned. “It’ll be fun! We’ll just grab a drink and wander.” I stopped walking, turning to face my sister. “If you’re not having fun after that, we’ll head back, okay?”

She nodded. “Okay.”

Pivoting on my foot, I headed to the house, only to stop when a large frame blocked the path. I froze when he wrapped his arms around my waist.

My ex-boyfriend nuzzled his nose into my hair. “Aud. There you are, baby.” He was slurring his words a little. Was he already drunk?

I tried to push him off of me. “I’m not your baby.” Stepping back, Ella grabbed my hand, squeezing it tight.

“Course you are.” He frowned. “You love me.”

“No, Duke. We broke up, remember?” I shook my head. “You cheated on me.” Among other things. Really, our relationship wasn’t great to begin with. He’d never cared about me, only what I could do for him. I’d just been so infatuated with him that I hadn’t seen that until it was too late. He was handsome, with swoopy dark blonde hair and blue eyes I’d let myself get lost in. But his good looks couldn’t hide his horrible personality.

Tonight, he was dressed as a sexy cop. Vomit. Just thinking about sex with him made me want to throw up. He’d never even gone down on me. What had I been thinking?

“We have to go. Bye, Duke.” Tightening my grip on Ella’s hand, I started walking away, hoping he wouldn’t follow us.

“You’re going to regret this!” my ex shouted.

I rolled my eyes. “Seems unlikely!”

Without turning around or looking back, I navigated us onto the front porch of the Delta Sigma Iota fraternity house. Our friend Sutton was here with her boyfriend Forest, who was friends with the president, so I’d deemed it as safe.

“Are you okay?” Ella asked, squeezing my hand.

“Yeah.” I let out a breath. “He’s annoying, but he’s harmless.” This wasn’t the first time, and I was sure it wouldn’t be the last.

“Ro…” She frowned.

“Come on, let’s just go inside. Everything’s fine.”

Now if I could just get my heart to believe it too.

Going outside for some air, I leaned on the porch railing, looking up at the night sky. The party was already in full swing when we arrived, making it easy to disappear into the crowds. After a few drinks, I’d felt less off-kilter.

The stars twinkled above me, and I closed my eyes. It was so easy to fake a smile, to be that bubbly, outgoing girl everyone loved. But I was tired. All I wanted was one night where I didn’t have to pretend.

Where I could just be me. Though some days, I didn’t even know who that was.

I hummed to myself, looking up at the sky. Sometimes I wasn’t even aware I was singing to myself until someone else pointed it out.

The sliding door behind me opened and shut, and when the wood creaked, I turned to find a guy mirroring my position on the other side of the deck as he ran his hands through his hair.

“Oh.” I rested my hand over my heart.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to frighten you.”

“No.” I shook my head. “You didn’t. I just didn’t expect anyone else to be out here.”

He stepped out into the light.

I was frozen. There was no way. He simply couldn’t be… “Parker ?”

He looked surprised as his eyes traced over me before settling on mine, his gaze softening. “Rosie? Is that you?”

It had been almost a decade since I’d seen him, but I knew who he was instantly. There was no mistaking his smile. That messy brown hair. He used to run his hands through it when he was nervous. Did he still do that?

I didn’t really know him anymore. But he’d been my friend. My best friend. The only person I’d ever been as close to as I was with Ella.

He looked the same, and yet completely different. Gone was the lanky boy I’d known, and in front of me was a man. Parker had filled out his frame, his biceps straining against his flannel shirt. Yep, it was official—my childhood best friend was handsome.

“Hi,” I whispered the word, frozen in place. What was he doing here? There was no way we’d been going to the same school for the last two years and had never bumped into each other, right? “I can’t believe you’re here.”