HAVING HENLEY I'm the Gilroy your mother warned you about. I'm a simple creature. I drink. I f*ck. I fight. If you're looking to do any of those things, I'm down. But I never do the same woman twice so if you're looking for something a little more long term than the time it takes us to both get off then don't blame me when you get hurt because you've been warned. I'm not a return to the scene of the crime kind of guy. I like my life. I like my freedom. At least I did. But that was before she came back into my life and ruined it all. Ruined me. As much as I want to blame her though, I can't. Because the simple life I've built myself, really isn't simple at all. It's a fortress I've constructed to keep her out. To keep her away because Henley O'Connell is dangerous to me in ways I can't even begin to describe. A life without her is easier. Cleaner. That's what I keep telling myself and I'll keep saying it, over and over, until I believe it. Because Henley is the only woman I've ever really wanted. And she's the only woman I can never really have. CONQUERING CONNER Conner Gilroy was my brother's best friend. Popular. Smart. Gorgeous. With his cocky grin and perfect family, he was the fantasy of almost every girl I knew, including mine. And for some reason, he wanted me. Me, Henley O'Connell. The ugly bookworm with bright orange hair. Poor white trash with a quick temper and a chip on her shoulder. He confused me and made me angry. He treated me like I was something more than what I was. Like maybe what I wanted wasn't just a silly fantasy. Like maybe it was real. As much as I wanted to trust him, believe in him, I couldn't. I pushed him away. I left Boston. Tried to move on without him. Tried to pretend that letting him go wasn't the single worst mistake of my life. But now I'm back. It wasn't supposed to be forever, It was temporary. A way to find closure. A way to move on. To prove to myself that I was right. That Conner Gilroy forgot about me as soon as I left. That I didn't break his heart. He isn't at all who I remember. He's surly and arrogant. He drinks too much and calls me Daisy. He scares me because one look at him and I know that there is no going back to my perfect life. Eight years later, I still want what he promised me. I want forever.