The Cliff and the Come-To-Jesus Moment

After I was dragged back from the edge of that cliff, I just… stopped obsessing over Ethan.

No more chasing him around, smothering him with questions, bending over backward to please him. Instead, I locked myself in the sunroom, now my makeshift prayer room, chanting like crazy. Even when he showed up to break off our engagement, I just nodded and said, "Fine."

Then, I went right back to my knees, begging: "God, please, have mercy on me! That night at the bottom of the cliff, I was poisoned, that's why I did what I did to that guy. It was only one night; I shouldn't be pregnant, right? And there’s no way he’ll find me, right?"

1.

My dress was hiked up in my hands as I tore through the woods. My body felt like it had been ripped open, but I couldn't stop—not for a second. Last night, down by the cliff, the drug had messed with my head. I’d tackled a good-looking stranger who'd seemed injured.

I’d tied his wrists with my sash, going all wild on him like some cheap hooker. I was all over him, whispering breathlessly, kissing his neck, going on and on, "Don't be scared, mister. I'm not going to hurt you, I'm just... hot. Need you to help me cool down... can I touch you? Can I kiss you? I need…"

And that guy, probably trapped, just took it. He barely said a word. But then, right when I finally… when I was screaming, he whispered, cold as ice, "If I don’t kill you tomorrow, I’m not worth anything."

I'm not kidding. That one sentence just dripped with the threat of death. It makes me shiver just thinking about it. So, this morning, I didn't even hesitate. I threw on my clothes and bolted. I needed to be miles away before he woke up and tried to make good on his promise.

Honestly, he wouldn’t even need to lift a finger. This whole “Royal Retreat” thing, with the governor, his wife, and all the rich kids, is basically the whole city’s upper crust camping out. If anyone found out I'd been with this guy last night, that I was no longer a virgin, they'd probably bury me alive.

"Lily! Thank God you’re okay!"

A teary voice startled me. I jumped, and turned to see my maid, Maggie, running towards me, her eyes red. Right behind her was my fiancé, Ethan. And... a whole crowd of the city's socialites, their maids, and the security guards.

My heart plummeted. This was bad, really bad.

2.

Last night, at the retreat’s big party, one of the governor’s sons threw some kind of fancy poetry jam by a pond near the cliffs. I wasn’t into it, but Ethan was, so I went. I had no clue somebody was going to slip something into my drink.

Just one glass, and I was dizzy, burning up. I knew something was wrong and tried to find Ethan, but these college-boy types got a little too drunk and started talking trash:

"Ethan, Lily’s drop-dead gorgeous and totally into you. Why do you keep trying to break up with her?"

"Looks like she's so desperate to keep you, she’s trying the whole ‘drunk seduction’ routine."

"If you don’t want her, Ethan, I’d be happy to escort her."

...