Twenty-one

|Cassie|

“The navy one makes you look too serious; your curves are not showing properly,” she mused, shaking her head in disapproval as soon as I put it on. “Try the burnt orange.”

“Mum, I don't need to be dressed like I'm walking a red carpet,” I sighed, pulling the next option from the rack.

She ignored me, motioning for her stylists to fetch the dress. “You're turning twenty-one, Cassie.” She tapped her chin with narrowing eyes. “And as my only daughter, my only asset—”

I groaned. “Please don't say asset.”

Her lips twitched, but she stayed focused. “Fine. My only priority, then. That's better, right?”

I didn't answer; I just stepped into the burnt orange silk gown and let it slip over my body.

My mother's face lit up. “That's the one.”

A moment later, she was calling out instructions, waving her hand like a director finalizing a masterpiece. Her secretary had been signaling for minutes that she has to leave but she was bent on picking my outfit first.

That's how much she values me and wouldn't allow anything to take away the time she had set aside for me. My mother, Victoria Montgomery wouldn’t trade that time for anything.

I exhaled, half amused, half exhausted. She stepped forward, pressing a cool hand against my cheek, her voice softer. “I just want tomorrow to be memorable for you.”

It would be. Just not in the way she expected!

****

Turning twenty-one is a milestone, the first year of another decade. It's the beginning of adulthood with all its privileges—drinking legally, booking a hotel without getting side-eyed and having your ID card demanded just to make sure you didn't run away from home, and, in my case, finally doing what most of my friends did at eighteen; losing my virginity.

Twenty-one and still untouched is wild, right? But here's the thing—I was never in a rush. This was not because I was waiting for marriage or anything dramatic like that; I didn't believe in all that; I just wanted it to mean something.

I met Ryan last year, right before my sophomore year of college. He was my first boyfriend and my first real taste of romance. He was charming in that easy, all-American way—athletic, funny, the kind of guy who always knew what to say to make me feel like the most special girl in the room.

He never pushed or rushed me, always gentle and would give me the chance to make the decision or final call. That's why, when my twenty-first birthday rolled around, I knew it was time. I had spent months preparing—reading books, watching movies, learning how to make the moment perfect.

I didn't want it to be boring. It was going to be a memory I would replay in my head and cherish for life. Chloe and Mia teased me endlessly as I prepared hard for the day that was almost rolling in.

“You are making a big deal out of this.” Chloe chewed along with the gum in her mouth

“It’s just like a cup of coffee. Once you take two sips, you gulp down the rest and get done with it. You should have lost it two years ago with us. Then, you wouldn't be this dramatic,” Mia cackled. They had come around to stay with me and prepare for my birthday the next day.

The gentle breeze seeping in through the opened window grazed my skin at the very moment the lead character in the book I was reading slipped his hand into the girl's panties.

My lips parted but made no sound. I felt it hard! I could picture myself as the girl, and my head became messier than I had imagined.

“This is insane.” I slammed the book shut, my chest heaving and beads of sweat appearing on my forehead, even with the cool air.

They burst into a mocking laughter. If I couldn't handle fiction, how would I handle the real thing? I decided it's best to stay sane and hungry till the following day so I flung the book to the corner of the room and picked up my phone instead.

****

They were the life of the party; I was reserving my strength for something else. It ended on a small note, and I quickly changed into a simple gown that was elegant enough to maintain my class.

“Have fun!” their voices echoed as my car moved.

Alex had to drop me because Ryan had left earlier due to an urgent situation, but I received his call that he was back in his apartment, so the night would surely happen.

One second, I was sitting on his bed, heart racing and body buzzing with anticipation. My heart was pounding in my ear. Different emotions passed through my brain, but none slowed down for me to process them. My eyes were blinking fast as he pulled me in his arms and began to unzip my gown.

“Thank you for giving me such an opportunity. I will cherish it for life.”

His sweet whispers dampened my panties the more. I had been going crazy with just thinking about it. Seeing it happen now, my entire body was on fire in no time. Just then, his stomach rumbled, and he excused himself and went to the bathroom.

The next second, his phone vibrated, lighting up with a message that turned my stomach inside out.

“Make sure you record the process as evidence and send it to us for entertainment. We need something to hold onto.”

The message was from one of his friends in their group chat. I stared at the words, my fingers shaking as I clicked open the chat. A whole thread of messages between him and his friends—talking about how easy I was, how they had a bet going on, how he planned to blackmail me with the video later to squeeze money out of me.

I couldn't breathe. My skin crawled. The guy I trusted, the one I was about to give everything to, was nothing but a liar. A disgusting fraud and I had been this close to falling for it.

I didn't think, I just moved. With lightning speed, I snatched up my purse and bolted out of his house before he could return from the bathroom. I ignored his texts and calls; I had no words for him. No response because my heart wasn't just broken—it was humiliated to the core.

How I had waited and prepared for this day flashed through my memories. My head felt heavy like it had been hit by a baseball bat. Drinking the pain away was the only choice so I hit the club without thinking twice.

Being a lightweight didn’t help either. With just three shots, I was already so tipsy that I had lost my brain’s functions. That posed me as an easy target to the lurking eyes that had been waiting for a lady to prey on.

“Wanna dance?”

“Hey baby, you look so hot,”

Those annoying and cheap remarks were flying around me as I struggled to get out of the grip of one looking like a sea urchin but he wouldn’t let me go

“Let me go, I do not want to dance with you.”

That only sounded like music to his ears. He kept his grip tight on my wrist watching me struggle to break away. My heart was already racing with no one in sight to save me because everyone was busy with their own fun.

“Always listen to a lady when she talks,” I heard a loud smack all of a sudden and turned to see my grabber shriek at the effect of the neck slap he got from another stranger.

He sharply released my hand without me standing properly. I was already preparing to hit my face on the floor when I was held back by the stranger’s strong hand.

“Easy, baby girl” a deep, smooth voice asked as his frame covered me.

The moment I met his gaze, words failed me. He was tall and broad-shouldered, dressed in a fitted black shirt that stretched over solid muscle, the sleeves rolled up to reveal strong forearms. His dark hair was tousled in that effortlessly sexy way, and his intense eyes watched me like he already knew my secrets.

“It’s best you go home early,” he advised and turned his back to leave but my hand held unto his shirt tightly to stop him.

“Don’t go!”