Grabbing Missy’s hand, I weaved my way through the packed dance floor of Hamilton’s. A live band had just started their set, and the crowd was buzzing with excitement and filling the dance floor. For most people, Saturday nights in Monroe were spent here drinking and laughing with friends, and rocking out to local musicians with the occasional out-of-towners. Tonight, Monroe did not disappoint, and I liked to think that most people were here for one of their favorite residents.

Missy and I had spent the day shopping in preparation for tonight. A tradition that we had for each of our birthdays. We both worked hard all year round, so for that one day of the year, we went crazy. Our days started with a champagne breakfast, followed by mani/pedis and a major gossip at our favorite salon, then a minimum of four hours of intense shopping where we would each buy a fabulous new outfit, shoes, and accessories. We followed with a late lunch at our favorite restaurant, and then we headed to one of our houses to have cocktails and prepare for our night out. We’d been doing it since we were twenty-one, and so far we hadn’t missed a year.

Tonight’s outfits involved a stunning little black dress that was strapless, tight, and scandalously short for Missy, and I wore a tight leather knee-length skirt, and a baby-pink cami that accentuated my boobs perfectly. We were a couple of vixens ready for an epic night out to celebrate Missy’s birthday.

“Ladies,” Andy greeted loudly when we reached the bar. “What brings you two out tonight?”

“It’s my birthday, bitches!” Missy yelled, then she threw her hands in the air and started waving them around like a crazy woman. “Andy, give me a kiss then make me a special cocktail.”

“Christ, you two are trouble.” He laughed, shaking his head at my best friend’s outburst. “Your other girl is working tonight.”

“Paige?”

“Yeah, clocked in about an hour ago.”

“She is only meant to work one weekend a month.”

“I don’t do the rosters, babe.”

He busied himself behind the bar and poured us each a shot of tequila, before shaking up what I fondly named the Randy Andy special, which was a very alcoholic, pink concoction that rocked my world. I had no idea what was in it, but I always came back for more. Missy and I clinked our tequila shots together before throwing them back, slamming the glass on the bar top, and demanding another.

We sat at the bar chatting, and Missy flirted outrageously with Andy, before we headed out to the dance floor. We spent the next two hours laughing, gossiping, dancing, and drinking. We were celebrating Missy’s birthday, but it was providing me with the perfect distraction from everything that had been infiltrating my life. In the space of a week, I was dealing with Drew’s crazy idea that I’d sell my share of Hamilton’s, Edward O’Leary’s reappearance, the break in at Sass, and the arrival of Ben in my life. It was craziness on so many levels, and it was keeping me on my toes.

But tonight I wanted to forget all about that, and so far I’d done just that.

* * *

He was here.

I felt that he was here.

I leaned back against the bar and eagerly scanned the room. The same intense feeling that hit me when Ben’s eyes were first on me ricochet through me again. But this time I knew the man behind the gaze, and I welcomed the excitement simmering inside with open arms. After our almost kiss and my delivery of candles, I wondered when I’d see him next. Had I been thinking about what those lips would feel like on mine? Of course. Was I going to do anything about it? Depends on how many Andy Specials I consumed. I was a confident woman. Usually when I wanted something, I went for it and didn’t stop until it was mine. Just like I did when I decided at the age of seventeen that I would own my own home decor store and buy a house near the mountains. At the age of twenty-five, I’d achieved both. And then when I was twenty-six and decided I wanted to go live in London for three months, I did.

But Ben was an entirely different. I had absolutely no control, and that both excited and scared the crap out of me.

He sat at a table toward the back of Hamilton’s, his eyes locked on me, and the moment he knew I’d found him, he shot a wink my way. I lifted my glass to my lips, continued staring at him over the top, and sucked back the entire glass of the strong cocktail Andy had just placed in front of me. The pull of Ben’s stare intoxicated me. No matter how strongly I willed myself to pull away, I was locked in. A shiver cascaded down my spine when he crooked his finger and silently demanded I join him. My feet moved at their own free will. His gaze deepened and roamed over my body as he watched me move toward him through the crowd. Having his eyes devour my body once again caused the butterflies to be unleashed and swarm uncontrollably in my stomach.

“Fuck, you look good,” he muttered when I got to him, his eyes feasting on my body. “Christ.”

My body immediately flushed, and it had nothing to do with the alcohol I’d consumed. “Glad I got your attention.”

That smirk I was coming to crave hit his lips. “You got my attention a long time ago, Sweetheart.”

“So, what are you doing here?” I asked. It was only then that I noticed two beers sitting in front of him. “Are you here with someone?”

“Yeah, Austin.”

“Ahh, the hottie.” I winked, pulling out the stool opposite him and taking a seat. “Boys night out?”

“Yeah, something like that.”

I rested my chin on my open palm and narrowed my eyes at him. “You’re very mysterious.”

“Got to keep you on your toes, sweetheart.”.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Paige Donaldson rushing through the crowd, balancing an arm full of empty glasses, and putting on a completely fake smile. Even when she was scowling, she still reminded me of a modern-day Goldilocks. After unloading the glasses, she walked over toward me and gave me a quick hug, before giving Ben a quick smile.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, concerned.

“I got called in last minute,” she replied, and anger flashed through her pretty brown eyes. “Its been a doozy of a night so far. I was just told that my skirt is too long. Seriously, if it was any shorter, I’d be showing my—” Her eyes flashed to Ben. “My lady bits.”

“Have you got a man?” Ben entered the conversation, and both of our attention went to him.

“Uh, no,” Paige replied, and her eyes briefly darted to mine, before being pulled back to Ben’s.

“If you had a man, he’d be happy with the length of your skirt. A man wants his woman to be classy. He sure as fuck wouldn’t want her showing what’s his to the world. When you find your man, he’ll tell you the exact same thing I’m telling you.”

Holy hell.

Paige stood frozen, mouth agape and eyes wide, looking at Ben like he had two heads. I felt myself just as dazed. The level of intrigue I had for this man shot to insane levels. He didn’t know Paige, but he’d just calmed the anxiety of a young, single mom who was trying to provide the best for her daughter in a matter of seconds.

I grabbed her hand and pulled us both out of our daze. “Go home and give Lily a big kiss from Aunt Sasha, then open a bottle of wine, put your feet up, and forget about this place. If I hear you’ve come in, I’ll take away your fifty percent discount at Sass.”

Her faux gasp rang out around us. “You wouldn’t dare?”

“If you take the whole weekend off, I’ll give you a 100% discount on the throw rug.”

Her smile was blinding. “Okay, I’m leaving.” She turned to Ben still smiling. “It was nice meeting you . . . ”

“Hunt,” Ben replied in an amused tone after witnessing our banter.

“His name is Ben.” I rolled my eyes. “His badass name is Hunt.”

“Well, my mood will determine what I call you,” Paige declared. “What you just said was super sweet, so tonight I’ll say it was nice meeting you, Ben.”

“By the way, I’m Paige,” Paige said with a narrowed glance at me.

“Oh my god, how rude am I?” I waited till I had both of their attention before I began the overdue introductions. “Ben, this is one of my best girls, Paige, and Paige, this is my newest stalker, Ben.”

“Fuck me,” Ben muttered under his breath and shook his head in my direction.

Paige just looked between us with a smile teasing her lips, before she left with a wave and disappeared into the office. Soon, she returned with her bag and rushed out the door.

“My badass name?”

“Uh, yeah,” I declared as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, and he was crazy for not realizing the badass level of his name. “Hunt is freaking badass. Its strong, manly, one syllable, and a don’t-mess-with-me kind of name. You know, like, you could introduce yourself to the bad guys and be all broody and intense and say”—I dropped my voice to try and imitate him—“my name is Hunt and I’m going to hunt you down. Could you imagine if you were a commando or a bounty hunter? You could totally use that as your tagline!”

His stare intensified before he threw his head back and gave me the gift of witnessing his deep laugh. His whole face softened when he laughed, and it was a beautiful thing to witness. His laughter died down and the softness in his eyes remained.

“I’ve got something I need to talk to you about,” he said, the softness in his eyes remaining but the seriousness in his voice evident. My back straightened as I wondered what he could need to discuss. It seemed like so much had happened between us in such a short amount of time that anything could come out of his mouth.

As he opened his mouth to speak, his gaze darted from mine and locked over my shoulder. Amusement danced across his face and he subtly shook his head. I shifted on my stool to look behind me, and couldn’t hold in my laughter.

Missy strutted toward us, parting the dance floor as she moved, and she had a huge smile on her face as her eyes darted between us. I waited for impact, because when Missy had Andy Specials anything could come out of her mouth.

“You two look so great together,” she said happily, her eyes sparkling. “But, right now I need to steal my bestie because we need to shake our booties. We have a reputation for owning the dance floor, and we are not losing that because you two want to see each other naked.”

She did not just say that.

“Who is seeing each other naked?” Austin’s amused voice hit the three of us when he reached the table. “Hey ladies, looking good.”

“Ben and Sasha. But right now, I am stealing her before he can get his hands on her.” Missy grabbed my hand and pulled me off the stool toward the dance floor. Looking back over my shoulder, I found both men staring at us with vastly different expressions on their faces. Ben had one of amusement, while Austin had one of concern.

Missy and I danced for an hour and, as she promised, we owned the dance floor. We’d been dancing on this floor since we were teenagers. The feeling of Ben watching me didn’t leave me, and it encouraged me to dance sexier than usual. I didn’t know what I was doing when it came to him, but it made me feel free and sexy. I was attracted to him physically, but there was something else about him that drew me to him. I wanted to know the man beneath the intensity. He’d given me glimpses, but I wanted to see more. I guess there was a first for everything. I wanted one night of crazy sex with him, and that would be it. I had rules I lived by. My need to protect my already fragile heart was strong. I knew that opening my heart to anything that wasn’t innocent could destroy me, and to be honest, I feared one more crack would shatter my heart forever. I refused to risk that.

As I swayed my hips along to Beyoncé, I looked back at the table and found Austin and Ben in a heated discussion. Both of their gazes suddenly swung to me and I stopped moving. Austin stormed off from the table. Ben made his way toward me, but I started moving to him.

“I need to ask you something, and you need to really fucking clear with me.” Ben’s voice went dangerously low, and my back went rigid when he got to me. “We got the prints back from the break in at your store. Prints came back as belonging to Edward O’Leary. We got him in for a chat, and he informed us that you two were out together on the night of the break in. He said he took you home, you two fucked, and then he went to Sass to drop something off for you. Any of that true?”

I don’t know how long I stood there staring at him as I allowed his question to penetrate. But once it had sunk in, I spun on my heel, stormed through Hamilton’s, and busted through the door of the office. I knew he was following me, and Missy followed right after him. I paced the office as my head screamed at me. Edward O’Leary had just up’d his creepiness majorly. Who the hell did he think he was? Lying to cops? Breaking into my store? As I began freaking out, it hit me that he had all of my personal details. My address. My contracts. Everything. I felt physically ill just thinking of that.

“Sasha, now really isn't the time to go quiet. Just answer me one question. Are you fucking Edward O’Leary?”

“Do I look like someone who would open her legs for Edward O’Leary?” I shrieked as rage pounded through my veins.

Suddenly, I was sober, and the Randy Andy specials I’d knocked back earlier were all but forgotten.

Ben stood across from me, his arms folded against his broad chest, emitting a dominating aura as he watched me closely while I fumed.

“Seriously, what the actual fuck? I haven’t seen him since the dinner from hell. Now you are telling me that he is spreading bullshit rumors that we are fucking? Great, now he is making me say fuck way too fucking much.” I took two steps toward Ben, and for some stupid reason I had the urge to poke his chest to make sure I made my point. “I’ll tell you something, Benjamin Hunt, I don’t cuss this much, but he just makes me want to say shit, fuck, bullshit, motherfucker.”

Giggling beside me broke my stare off with Ben and I looked at Missy, who nodded her head in agreement.

“She’s right, Mr. intense. She doesn’t cuss like a sailor—more like a drunk deckhand. So she’s pissed if she is bringing out the motherfucker.”

“You’ve got to believe me,” I said, turning back to Ben.

“You’re definitely someone who’d get the attention of somebody like O’Leary.”

I sighed in frustration and threw up my arms dramatically. “What the hell does that mean?”

“Sweetheart,” he murmured before breaking into a full-blown smile. “You can’t be serious?”

I shot him my damn-straight-I-am-very-serious look.

He took two steps until there was barely an inch between us, and the look in his eyes made me forget how to breathe. “You’re sexy as hell, and I’m not just talking about your body. I’m also talking about your spitfire attitude, sass, and that fuckin’ mouth of yours. You wrap your body in tight skirts, and when you walk you sway those hips like you’re walking down a goddamn catwalk. So yeah, Sasha, you’re someone who gets the attention of a lot of fucking men.”

Our eyes locked with a force so powerful I was afraid I’d never be able to claw my way out of. He was a cannonball, smashing his way into my life and causing the best kind of devastation. The butterflies that died at the mention of Edward O’Leary were now fluttering wildly, and it was all because of him.

“I’m not having sex with him,” I said softly, my eyes pleading with him to believe me. I needed him to believe me. “I never would.”

“Good to know, Sweetheart,” he said softly, but even with the softness of his voice, his eyes showed hardness. Then he dropped the bombshell. “We just found out that he is here tonight. I want to get you out of here.”

“What?” I gasped. Seriously, when would this guy get the hint?

“Missy, Austin will take you home.”

“Do we really need to leave?” I asked softly, not wanting to end Missy’s birthday celebration just yet.

“I’m not fucking around when it comes to him.” Ben’s voice told me not to argue with him. “Let’s go.”

With my hand in his, Ben dragged me through the bar at rapid speed. I could barely keep up. He was a man on a mission, and his mission was to get me out of Hamilton’s and away from O’Leary. That thought alone did something to me. The front door was in sight, when all hell broke loose around me. The power suddenly went out, and an eerie silence filled Hamilton’s. Time froze, and then chaos ensued. My hand was ripped from Ben’s and I lost the protection his grip offered. The surging crowd heading to the exit pushed me in the opposite direction, and with every stumbling step I took backward, I was pushed away from safety. Through the darkness, and with the light of peoples’ cell phones, I desperately looked around until I locked on Ben stalking toward me, a look of determination and anger crossing his face, with Missy and Austin close behind.

Suddenly, something hit me hard from the side, and I was knocked off my feet. I blinked through the pain pulsating through my skull and my cheekbone began to burn ferociously. I’d never been hit before, but I knew that’s what had just happened. What the hell was going on? As I scrambled to my feet, my eyes scanned the crowd, desperate to find Ben, Austin, or Missy. But all I found were bodies rushing past me toward the exit.

I stumbled toward the exit, pushed open the fire escape, and the night air hit me.

I sucked in a deep breath and tenderly touched my throbbing cheek and winced. From behind, I heard the door open, and I spun around expecting Ben, and ready to beg him to take me home, but I found the last person I wanted to see.

“Out here all alone?” Edward smirked, taking a step toward me. “Weren’t you ever told you shouldn’t leave a bar on your own. You never know who could be watching.”

How could I have been so stupid coming out here on my own while the bar was in darkness? Ben had warned me that Edward was here no less than five minutes ago, and now look at the situation I found myself in. All I could do was hope that Ben, Austin, or even Andy had seen me and would come for me.

“Stay the hell away from me. Nothing is ever going to happen between us. I’ve said no to you so many times, and it’s never going to be yes. Just back off.” I warned, my voice rising with anger as I desperately hoped someone would hear me. “Seriously, just back off.”

His lips twisted into an evil grin. “For such a sweet looking woman, you sure do have an angry side. Gotta say, it’s not a turn off.”

His hand shot out and wrapped around the side of my neck, and before I could scream, his lips were on mine. Shock coursed through me. I gasped and he took the opportunity of my fear to thrust his tongue into my mouth. I struggled against him, clawed his arm, and pushed away from him with all the strength I could find.

“Get away from me,” I yelled, my body shaking with fear and disgust. I spun on my heel, busted back through the door back into Hamilton’s, and ran right into Ben’s firm chest. My body shook violently with relief when his arms wrapped around me and he buried me into his chest. Instinctively, my arms wrapped around his waist as I clung onto him tightly.

In the midst of the darkness of Hamilton’s, his body felt like comfort, his arms provided safety, and his grip on my hair offered protection.

This was the first time I’d been in his arms.

Secretly, I prayed it wouldn’t be my last.