Prologue

Derek's POV

She wasn't always like this. You know, happy. She was once a dark and dreary type of girl. She hated to laugh and she always cried. She had told me this on our first date and explained that when she moved into my house, that she found some sort of happiness with our constant arguing that she couldn't find a reason to hurt herself anymore.

When she had met and started dating Sam, somehow, she began to slowly relapse to the girl she once was, before she met me. Yeah, I take the credit for her being happy. Because she told me that it was me who made her spirit feel alive once more.

But, you see, I was there through all of their good times and the bad. Sure, everyone thinks that I'm an egotistical jerk of a guy, but in reality, I can be pretty sensitive when I feel like it.

I was and am very over-protective of Casey. My Casey. Before Sam and Casey had even begun to date, I told him that if he were to ever hurt her in any way, I would kill him. And when he did hurt her, I almost succeeded in killing the bastard, but Casey… Casey stopped me. And I listened to Casey, because for one, I didn't want to hurt her also and secondly because I have loved her since day one. Yes, I, Derek Venturi, am in love with my amazing stepsister, Casey Mc Donald.

I never told her because A. I was afraid of rejection from Casey, B. I didn't want to ruin the small friendship that we had going. Yeah, hard to believe that she and I are friends, but it's true. Sure, we annoy the hell out of each other but deep down we really are friends.

I'm sure you're wondering why I keep babbling on and on about the past, well, I have to. You see, because this is part of our story and how we became who we are today. Let me go back to the very beginning…