Backstory-Perfect Planning

Let’s talk backstory or as I like to call it- The good stuff. We’ll start with Devlyn, the Heroine:

Coming from the south, she was brought up with a respect for authority, her elders and doing things “the right way.” Ever polite and sociable, you would say she was raised to be a lady. Her family is middle class, her father a deacon I his church and the manager at a local department store. Her mother works part time as a substitute teacher and full time homemaker. She has a little sister she adores and would do anything to protect her. Her life is charmed to an extent. Everything is planned and she is more than happy to go along with the plan.

The town she’s from in SC is small and very much attached to the past. Everyone has their place and NO ONE had better get out of line. Devlyn knows to toe the line, at least until she graduates. Then, she can do as she likes. Smart and funny, Devlyn catches everyone’s eye. Including Ryan’s. But she knows she can’t go there. Ever. His family is old money and old money comes with old ideas of people and where they belong. Besides, Ryan would never take the chance. He’s too content with the way things are.

Ryan’s turn:

Except…he’s not. Ryan is the baby of his family, with nine years between himself and his brother, his only other sibling. Having money is nice and Ryan enjoys every bit of it, but he’s feeling stifled. His mother, rigid and stuck in the past, makes it her mission to make sure he upholds traditions…all of them. His father is hands off, only getting involved when needed, which is hardly ever since his mother rules with an iron fist. His brother…they deal with each other, but that is the extent of it. It’s clear to all those on the outside and inside, he’s his mother’s favorite, though there is no joy in it.

He’s had his eye on Devlyn for what has felt like years. Admired her, wanted her, even needed her when he let his guard down. He knows all about the small minds of his town and family, but that’s not him. He's different…he’s more. And he wants more. Taking a chance, he makes his move, surprised by both the fear and happiness that shines in Devlyn’s eyes when she realizes he's serious. He’s led a sheltered life and has little idea of what could happen if word got out they were dating. A moment in the gym locker room at school opens his eyes and he suddenly understands the fear and the need for secrecy. It hurts to not be able to touch as he likes, to not go on dates, to watch as others make passes at Devlyn. he wants to push them all away and taker her some place safe, where they can just be.

Prom is the culmination of strategy, bribing and just plain praying to God that everything would come together. Even though they couldn’t go as a couple, it still felt like a date, especially when he got to dance with her, feel her skin against his for a few brief moments. After prom is even better, more than he could have hoped for in even his wildest dreams. To wake up next to her in the early hours of the morning is a memory he’s going to cherish. As as he drops her off at home, he begins to make plans of the future. Once he gets his trust fund, they’ll be free.

Two months before school is to let out for the summer, his mother comes into his room, face stern. That’s not something new, but his father is behind her. That’s new. His father never gets involved. Stomach in painful knots, Ryan listens as his mother sends him away, shipping him off to boarding school in London that night. All he can think of is Devlyn and if she’s going to wait for him. He tries to write her, tell her that he is coming back, but he never gets a response. Not even his letters come back. After too long, he puts it all away, determined to never let it happen again. No one would ever get back in.

Devlyn doesn’t know any of this…all she knows is that one night of passion and her whole life has changed, shifted so much that she barely recognizes it. When she tries to find Ryan, tell him what’s going on, he’s gone and she is all alone, with not even family to count on. Doing what is best for her, she leaves the state and lands in Texas, as far away from her past as possible. It’s not what she planned, but she is strong enough to make it work for her. Too much is riding on her shoulders to fail.