“Isa! Come here for a second!” Brooke yelled from across the field, so I began walking toward her, swallowing what was left of my beer.

“Whatsup?” I slurred, tossing my empty red cup onto the dewy grass.

“So check it.” Brooke chuckled, coming closer to me, close enough for her drunken breath to skim over my cheek. “Those guys there,” she tossed her thumb over her shoulder to indicate where a group of about five guys were standing. All different sizes and heights. I couldn’t see that much because my vision was blurring in and out. I looked back to Brooke, her bright blue eyes glaring into mine with a gleam. “They know where we can really party.”

“‘Really’ party?” I asked, eyebrow quirked. “And what exactly did they say?” Brooke leaned in closer, her lips coming over the lobe of my ear. “Where we can fuck for as long as we need.” I stepped backward, then looked over her shoulder to the guys again, this time focusing my eyes more. Well, attempting to. They were now all similar heights, but different builds. One caught my eye briefly, but I didn’t lock onto him for too long.

“And if we get murdered?” I asked Brooke, a cheeky smile on my lips.

“Then we die happy.”

Shrugging my shoulders, I smirked. “Life was for living.”

Pulling up to a hotel complex, Bryant veers the car into an underground parking area. The silence between us is deafening, and if I wasn’t so fucking confused and mad, it would have made me a little uncomfortable. He switches the car off just as I turn in my seat to face him. “I don’t remember much about that night. I mean, the smaller details I’m not very good at. Some PTSD shit, but…” I trail off, narrowing my eyes onto his. “Wolf.”

Bryant grins, running his hand over his short stubble. “Yeah. I’m sure we can work on getting the rest of your memories back. Come on.” He pushes open the door, getting out and leaving me in the empty car alone. I stall briefly, a wave of panic and distrust washing over me before I decide that I have nothing to lose, and maybe some lost memories to gain, so I push the door open. “Well, lead the way.”

He stops and then stares right through me. Just when I think he’s going to say something, he shakes his head and chuckles before walking toward the elevators. “Well okay,” I mutter under my breath, following him. The doors ding open and I step in, watching Bryant closely.

“So why?” I ask, folding my arms across my chest.

“Why, what?” he pushes the ‘PH’ button and the elevator starts rising.

“Why didn’t you ever turn me in?” He looks at me on the corner of his eyes, his jaw clenching.

Wanting to look away from his penetratingly annoying gaze, I cock my head forward, just as the elevator doors ding open displaying the vast space of immaculate dark marble tiles, red shaggy rugs, and floor to ceiling windows that overlook the bright city lights. The lighting is soft, falling over us in a dark orange shadow. I step forward. “Wow.” Looking toward the kitchen, I turn around to face him again with a small smile playing on my lips.

“Nic—” my lovely view of his apartment is rudely cut short as something is shoved down over my face. A scream erupts out of me from my panic just as I feel a rough hand squeeze over my mouth as another wraps around my head, tugging me backward. Swinging my legs around, I try to kick, scratch, and claw whoever it is that is behind me but with no success.

“Fuck!” The voice growls. “B, knock her out. She’s too feisty!” A thud vibrates against my head just as a dark abyss pulls me into a deep slumber.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” I asked Brooke, just as we walked back toward the group of guys. “I mean, I’m drunk, high, and horny, and I’m all for a good time, but…”

Brooke halted, turning to face me as her hands came to my shoulders. “Trust me, it’s fine. They’re hot, a few years older than us, but imagine, just imagine, how good they are in bed!” Brooke’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she sucked her bottom lip into her mouth.

I ran my tongue over my suddenly dry lips. “Fuck it. Let’s do it.” Brooke and I had been friends since we were fourteen. We both had issues, man issues, we were both addicted to sex. To the feeling and attention, that we got during sex, so it was only a matter of time before we became friends. Even at such a young age, we knew. She has been there for me through some of the loneliest days of my life.

Once we reached the guys, I smiled suggestively toward them, but I’m not sure what it would have looked like because of all the drugs and alcohol that was zipping through my body. I felt like a ten, but I probably looked more like a solid two.

Swiping open the doors of the tent, I shoved Brooke aside with a grin. “You ready for this?” I still haven’t thought really hard about how they managed to have this all set up here. It must have taken a load of men to set it all up.

She shrugged, taking off her shirt and shifting the bottle of Jack from one hand to another. “Born ready, bitch.” I peeked inside the tent and saw the guy I noticed earlier with a smirk on his face. He was handsome, but it was more in an obvious boy-next-door way.

Heading to where he was lounging on an armchair, I wrapped my arm around the back of his neck and lowered myself down onto his lap. Bringing the rim of the bottle up to my lips, I tipped the bottle back and swallowed. “Hey.”

He grinned, two dimples sinking into each cheek. “Hey.”

Looking from his eyes to his mouth, I brought my lips down to his, skimming them over and running my tongue across the rim. “You wanna play with me?”

He tucked his shoulder-length blonde hair behind his ear. “Yeah, I’ll play with you.”

“I’m a little broken…” I added, smirking darkly.

“Broken girls fuck better.”

I laughed, gripping the back of his neck and yanking his lips to mine. Pulling his bottom one into my mouth, I sucked on it roughly all while sliding off his lap. “Yeah, we do.”

My head thuds like a pounding pulse is strumming heavily through every vein inside of it. With blackness clouding my vision like thick fog, the rich scent of tobacco, sweet cologne and leather dominates my senses. Bringing my hand up to my head, I yank the black rag off, tossing it onto the ground. Rubbing the blur from my eyes, my vision catches the rich mahogany wood, deep blood red walls and sleek black side desk that’s hidden in the corner. Walking toward the single bed that’s pushed against the wall, I run my hands over the silk sheets until the material is slipping over the palms of my hands. I’m so stupid. Of course he wanted me dead. I killed his—whatever he was to him—they’d all want me dead. I was so caught up in being in the safety of having my father’s name over my head that I completely lost touch with reality. Of the fact that dangerous, sick guys who liked to do sick things in bed, might want my head. Do I regret that night? Yes and no, but do I regret that night for the reasons I should? No. Why does Bryant want to marry me though? Why? Why go through all this if he’s just going to kill me in the end?

The light from the hallway shining through the opening of the door breaks through my expanding thoughts. Bryant walks in, shoving his hands into the pockets of his slacks.

“What the fuck do you want from me?” I whisper, though it comes out hoarse.

Pulling out a packet of Camels, he bangs the end onto the palm of his hand until a single cigarette pops out. Bringing the packet to his mouth, his eyes stay on mine as he bites down on it, tugging it free with his teeth. He flicks open a metallic black Zippo, inhaling deeply before letting the thick cloud of smoke slowly leak from between his lips.

I wave it away, trying not to inhale what feeds my addiction for nicotine. Oh, how I could do with a smoke right now. “What I want, is for you to do exactly as you’re told.”

“I can’t do that. Never been the submissive type.”

He chuckles, though it's not a nice chuckle. It's a chuckle that has chills erupting over my spine. Looking to the side while taking another long inhale of his cigarette, he growls, “These are non-negotiable terms, Isa, and from what I remember, you do the submissive thing very well. It just takes a particular type of man to bring your stubborn ass to your knees.”

“Why?” I blurt out because it’s the first thing that pops up in my head. “Why? Why would you need me? Why wouldn’t you just turn me into the police, or hell… kill me?”

His sharp jaw clenches as he flicks the ash off from the tip of his smoke. “The latter is still up for discussion.”

I swallow. “Well, just get it over with then.”

Bryant laughs, dropping his smoke to the ground and stepping on it with his perfectly polished dress shoes.

“Why would I make this easy for you?” He tilts his head. In an instant, his hand comes up to my neck. He runs the tips of his fingers over the curve of my jaw before hastily gripping onto my throat and shoving me against the wall roughly, my head smashing against it. “You killed my brother.”