Page 41 of Forgive Me For I Have Sinned

Since I was best friends with Alicia, no one considered it in high school. After I was blacklisted my senior year by the man sitting in front of me and the asshole I'm now supposed to marry, no one gave a shit or looked closely. I was a nuisance. A threat and honestly, they were right. Charles Devlin made sure I was his puppet, ordering me to destroy lives.

"I'll have a milkshake."

"Flavor?"

He looks up. "What flavor is your favorite?"

Those damn butterflies are swarming in my stomach again. Get a grip, Veronica.

"Oreo, cookies and cream."

He taps the table with his hands like a drum. "Oreo, cookies and cream it is then," he says with a smile.

I snag my bottom lip with my teeth and write it down, even though it is unnecessary because I won't charge him after he bought me all those pretty clothes.

"I'll be right back."

"Where you goin?"

I blush. "I have to make your milkshake."

"They got you doing that too?"

"Uh…yeah." My cheeks flame like I'm sixteen, and my crush is right in front of me. "I'll be right back."

I scuttle behind the counter to make him the milkshake. "I wish I could make you blush like that," Adam says next to me, placing the dishes in the commercial dishwasher.

"I wasn't blushing," I say defensively.

"You know he keeps looking at me like he wants to murder me every time I talk to you, but I'll die a happy man because it's about time I see you get all girly for a guy."

I pick up the ice cream scooper and slide the freezer door open to scoop the ice cream. "I'm not girly for him." I shoot back, hating myself for reacting this way when I know all he wants is…what they all want, my body.

Adam places the milk on the counter from the fridge. "Then, don't blush, and you practically ran back here like your ass was on fire after you talked to him. He wouldn't stop staring at you at the party you invited me to. I overheard some things––"

I stiffen and place the blender on the machine. "They are all true," I say, turning on the blender and drowning out the rest.

When it finishes, and I am pouring the shake into the fifty's diner-styled shake glass, Adam says softly, "There is one important part that isn't true because I know you––the real you, Veronica. You're none of those things. I hope he realizes it before it's too late."

I grab the glass and look at my friend. "It's already too late, Adam."

Alaric left me burning in the fire twice. The first time I ran, he never went after me. I stumbled, I fell, but he was never there to catch me. The second time I stood, I pleaded with my eyes, my soul screaming at him to save me. He never looked up.

My heart burned inside a church before God's angels praying for a miracle. It never came, and I knew it was because I was unworthy in everyone's eyes.

I place the milkshake before Alaric and slide a straw next to the glass. "Will that be all?"

"What time do you get off?"

"Oh, that's right. You need to blow off steam," I say tonelessly. He frowns at my sudden change in attitude, but I'm glad I found the will to remind myself that I mean nothing to this man. I never did, and my future will never change, but this is the part of my day I control. "I'm going to say this only once." He looks up after sliding the straw inside the cup with a blank expression, but I continue, "Charles Devlin has respected my time while I work in this restaurant at night, and so has everyone else. This is a time that I'm me. A time that I'm not what someone expects me to be or do. It's a time where I'm not a slave to someone's pleasure, and I respectfully request you don't come here asking for something I would never give you if the circumstances were different"––I slam the ticket on the table––"shakes on the house. You have yourself a good rest of your night. Mr. Riordan."

He looks confused when I turn away, but Alaric needs to understand that he doesn't own me or this part of my life because of who he is. I worked hard to find my identity, even if very few people see who I really am.

CHAPTER 16

Veronica

I'm walking toward the bus stop, dragging my feet down the sidewalk in my Crocs with a thousand-dollar tip in my pocket at five a.m. I wanted to give the tip back but couldn't pass up on free money when I needed it. The money would help pay for lunch for the rest of the week, and I could save the rest for Christmas to help the staff with their families at the house. They have children to feed, and every year since I was a kid, they would all manage to get me a gift, and it was the best present I ever got because it was from a special place. A place called kindness, and only some are gifted with something so precious. I was alone during that time of year. Where families would get together and go on trips and create memories.

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