“Miss? Can you hear me?”

I groaned and kept my eyes squeezed shut. My alarm hadn’t even gone off yet. Surely it was too early for class to start.

“Miss, you need to open your eyes.”

Events came rushing back to me and my eyes flew open in shock.

Clint. The woods. The men I’d heard while lying on the forest floor.

It had all been real.

I recognized the man’s voice. It was Doc. I was slightly disappointed to see that he wasn’t three feet tall with a long white beard and kindly face. He’d sounded older, but couldn’t have been a day over thirty. His light brown hair looked as if it’d been windswept into the perfect position—something that no doubt had taken the right hair products along with a lot of time and patience. Dark scruff covered his face, making it hard to determine his exact age. I would’ve guessed his height as close to six feet, with muscles in all the right places. If his body was any indicator, he was no stranger to hard work.

Like a young Clint Eastwood.

Clint.

Ugh.

I couldn’t think about him.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. “W-where am I?” My voice was nothing more than a raspy whisper. I knew it was a side effect of being choked, but briefly considered the possibility that it could be permanent, sending a jolt of fear through me.

The man gave me a sympathetic smile. “You’re safe now. Let’s leave the rest for later. Want to tell me—”

“What? You’re shitting me, right?!” A loud voice roared from the hallway and I shrank back as the door was thrown open.

“What the fuck is going on here, Doc?” The man was gorgeous; his dark hair fell right below his jawline, slightly curling at the ends. If Joe Manganiello and Jason Momoa had a love child, this man was definitely it. He was tall, but muscular—like he spent hours in the gym and his eyes—they were such a dark shade of brown that it was almost impossible to see his pupils.

Those same eyes narrowed when he looked at me as if I were something he’d found stuck to the bottom of his boot.

The man he and I referred to as Doc stepped in. “Charm, we found her out in the woods, all alone. She was unconscious…she’d been stabbed—”

Charm held a hand up. “Enough.” Then he turned those dark eyes on me again. “What’s your name?”

I tried to swallow, but my throat was completely dry. “It’s N-Neve.” I’d wanted to sound brave, but that went out the window the minute my voice cracked.

Charm, whose personality was in direct opposition to his name, crossed his arms over his chest. “Neve. How the hell did you end up in these woods?”

I was still lying down, looking up at him. It was a submissive position, so I propped myself up on my elbows, ignoring the stab of pain in my side and arm. “Pass.”

“Oh, fuck no!” He exploded with anger, just like he’d done out in the hall. “You do not get to waltz into my fucking clubhouse and demand a pass when I ask you a direct question!” With each word, he moved lower and lower until he was shouting directly into my face, his spittle hitting my cheeks.

Doc stepped in and wrapped an arm around Charm’s shoulders. “Okay, let’s have you stand over here for a bit, yeah?”

Thinking about the events that led to me being here only made me feel like crying, and I refused to shed a tear in front of these strangers.

“You a cop?” Charm bit out from across the room, scowling at me as if I’d been caught trying to torch the place.

I laughed at the absurdity of it, pushing myself right into another coughing fit. With streaming eyes, I managed to rasp out, “Not even close. I’m a nobody. Can I leave now?”

His eyes narrowed and he looked ready to agree when another man entered the room. His wavy blond hair was unruly, covering one eye in its quest to escape his head, but the big grin on his face commanded all of my attention. His beard would’ve covered it up had he not styled the ends of his mustache to curl upward. He was one pirate hat and some eyeliner away from joining Captain Jack Sparrow and his merry buccaneers. “Hey Beautiful. Have a nice nap?”

It was Happy.

The more I stared at him, the more I realized he was built like a pirate as well—tall and lanky.

His personality was infectious and I found myself smiling back. “Hey, yourself.”

“Rooster, get the fuck out.”

Rooster?

I’d really hoped his name was Happy. It suited him.

Charm began hustling him toward the door when Rooster spoke again. “Wait—Charm, it’s a sign. Don’t you see? I was just wishing that we had a club whore and then we find her.”

His smile was so earnest that I almost forgave him for referring to me as a whore.

Almost.

Instead, the implication of his words sank in. I was at the mercy of a group of men—men wearing leather vests. Friggin’ hell—I’d been rescued by bikers.

Way to go, Neve. Out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Given that we were in the middle of the wilderness, I was going to go out on a limb by assuming that they weren’t exactly on the right side of the law either. Doc ignored the confrontation and strapped a blood pressure cuff around my arm.

Charm roughly grabbed the front of Rooster’s shirt. “We’re not that kind of club, asshole.”

Wait—so they didn’t have any women here?

Happy/Rooster took a step back, straightening his shirt in the process. “Yep, got it. Just thought it might be a nice change. See ya later, Beautiful.”

I tipped my chin up in reply as Charm turned back to me. “So, my men find you unconscious in the forest less than twenty-four hours ago and now you think you’re well enough to leave?”

I nodded just as the first trickle of blood ran from my nose. I tried to quickly brush it away, but both men’s faces changed. The scowl disappeared from Charm’s face, seemingly replaced by several different emotions all at once. It was the same look I’d gotten from my parents when they realized what I’d gotten myself into—disappointment…anger…sadness. It was all there on his face. I turned away, feeling even more uncomfortable.

“Well, that explains a lot,” Charm began. “When’s the last time you had a fix?”

I looked at Doc. “What day is it?”

He glanced down at his watch. “July fifth for the next thirty minutes.”

I sighed. I could lie and say I’d never used, but what was the point? I was in the middle of a biker’s den; if anyone had coke, it’d be them. I knew I might have to cozy up to one of them to get it, but that was a small price to pay. Doc would be my first choice, since he rescued me and all.

“I had a line last night. So, I guess it’s been about twenty-four hours.”

Charm sank down onto a chair, giving nothing away with his facial expression. “Let me guess, you want more.”

I nodded, a little too eagerly. “Yeah, if you’ve got it—”

He rubbed at the stubble on his face while Doc continued getting my vitals. “And you plan on paying for it…how?”

Damn.

I was definitely going to have to sleep with one of them. I was wrong yesterday—this was rock bottom. I looked between the two men. I would’ve preferred Doc, but I needed someone with the power to get me coke.

C’mon, Neve. Seductive.

I licked my lower lip, my tongue slipping into each crack. So, I didn’t have soft lips anymore, but I still had a nice body. “I could…” I trailed off as Charm laughed bitterly, a look of utter disgust on his face.

“You’re shitting me, right? You’re not about to offer up yourself as payment are you, little girl? That’s sure as hell not an even trade, in even the loosest sense of the words.”

Even Doc was trying to mask a smile and in that moment, I hated both men in front of me. I hated them more than I hated Clint, if that was possible.

“You’d be lucky to have me—” I started, only to be cut off again.

“Sweetheart, you look like a mangy dog that needs to be put out of its misery,” He pointed at my side. “Obviously, someone already tried and failed. My men? They want a woman—not a skeleton.” He chuckled to himself again before getting up and walking to the door.

“I think I can get her patched up. What do you want me to do with her after, Charm?” Doc asked.

He never even turned around as the door swung open. “Put it back where you found it, Doc.”

I couldn’t go back out there. All my bravery was gone—I would die in the wilderness. What if Clint was still hanging around, hoping to finish the job?

I pushed myself into a sitting position, my head spinning from the effort. “Wait—I could help you—”

He paused, halfway out the door, and turned around to face me. “How do you figure?”

I struggled to think of something…anything. My eyes landed on a broom in the corner. “I could cook and clean for you and your men. I’m good at it.”

I didn’t know if I was good at it or not, but I was desperate.

Charm nodded to himself. “Fine. Detox her, Doc. Then we’ll see where we stand. I ain’t agreeing to anything more tonight.”

The door slammed shut behind him and I breathed a sigh of relief. Doc didn’t seem as happy with the decision.

“Neve.”

I plastered a smile on my face. “This is good; I won’t let you down.”

He pinched his brow. “When’s the last time you ate anything?” My face fell when I couldn’t remember and he continued, “You and I both know that you’re lying. I get it; I do. But, Charm? Fuck, you better miraculously learn how to be Martha Stewart in the next few days.”

I tried to swallow again, but my mouth was like cotton. Doc started pulling various sized straps from a drawer and I watched him curiously.

“What’s all that for?”

His teeth gnawed at the corner of his mouth as he worked. “Detox, Neve. Trust me, it’s easier this way.”

My heart began to beat a little faster. I’d just traded the Colorado wilderness for sobriety. I’d told myself that I’d quit before, but my willpower was nonexistent when it came to a line of snow.

Doc’s plan?

To strap me to this bed until I sobered up.

On one hand, it was a hell of a lot better than any of the ideas that I’d had before. On the other, I doubted I’d survive long enough to celebrate.