For as long as I could remember, Theodore West was in my life as the support system I needed when my parents were too busy building our family’s future.

He offered me shoes to dance on, a shoulder to absorb my tears, and the harsh reality of where my life was leading when I was at my lowest point.

And when the future my parents planned derailed after a statewide scandal, I had no choice but to fantasize about one for myself that didn’t involve them.

But Theo? He was always in it.

My father’s best friend.

The man who would undoubtedly end me if I didn’t end him first.