“It’s so loud!” I called to Penny over the roar of the music in my ears.

Penny threw me a look over her shoulder as she pulled me into the depths of Kadia nightclub. It was hard to keep up with her in the heels she’d forced me to wear. She moved like a graceful cat through the crowd toward the bar at the back of the club. “You’ll get used to it!”

I wasn’t sure if that was true or not. Each beat of the music pounded in my eardrums and set my teeth on edge. I wobbled on my heels as Penny drew me up beside her when we reached the bar. She braced herself on the edge and peered up at the wall of liquor behind the bartender. He was a young guy with short black hair and muscled arms decorated in tattoos. A real heartbreaker and just Penny’s type.

She leaned in closer when he came over to take our order. Over the music, I couldn’t tell what she asked for, and he shook his head when she pulled cash out of her clutch. It paid to be pretty in a place like this. I waited with my hip pressed to Penny’s for reassurance.

This was so not my scene.

I preferred quiet corners with warm lighting to curl up and read a book. I would choose the smell of a candle over that of sweaty bodies, perfume, and alcohol. And I sure as hell would take a cup of tea over a glass of whatever the hell Penny handed me with a sheepish smile.

I peered down into my glass. It was nearly fluorescent yellow with a shot glass full of dark liquid sitting in the middle. “What is this?” I asked.

Penny tapped the side of her glass against mine. “A drop shot. They’re good. And it will help you loosen up. Promise!”

I stared down at the concoction, already wincing. “Penny … can’t I just have a vodka cran or something?”

Penny placed her fingers on the bottom of my glass and tilted it up. “Drink it. We used to party all the time. Don’t tell me you’ve completely lost your edge.”

I had. A long time ago. Matter of fact, I didn’t think there was ever a point where I did have this “edge” Penny was referring to. I sighed and admitted defeat, though. Penny would never make me do something dangerous, and she would know when I was really drawing the line.

“Okay,” I said.

We both chugged the shot together. When I was done, I slammed my glass down on the bar and dragged the back of my hand across my mouth. The shot had been sweet but potent.

“Not bad, right?” Penny smiled as she put her empty cup and shot glass down. Her hips were swaying to the music.

I shrugged. “Not terrible.”

“Good! Because I ordered us each two.”

The bartender placed two fresh drinks on the bar. I looked imploringly at my friend, pleading with my eyes for her to take it easy on me, but it was no use. She pushed the second drink into my hands, and we drank up.

I was going to be buzzed in no time. It had been ages since I’d had a drink and even longer since said drink had consisted of hard liquor and whatever the hell the shot was dropped in.

Penny collected our glasses and thanked the bartender with a flirty smile. Then, she took my hand and led me away from the bar, through the throngs of clustered tables surrounded by other clubbers, and onto the middle of the dance floor. She spun around to face me, some of her hair getting caught in her lip gloss, and called, “I love this song!”

When she started dancing, I couldn’t resist the call of the music either. We danced around and against each other like we used to when we were first legal and hit the club scene. I’d tired of that game as soon as it started and moved to Hawaii for my nanny job—and to get away from my overbearing parents who seemed to think twenty-one was the new twelve. They held onto me as tightly as humanly possible, and I’d done the only thing I thought I could do, run away to another state.

The rhythm of the music and the beat in the soles of my feet had me loosening up. If felt good to dance and let go, and Penny and I were having a blast in no time.

We were also drawing in the attention of several guys around us, which was a little unnerving for me. Penny loved it. She lived for this kind of thing. She came alive when a man’s eyes were on her, and soon she was flipping her hair, shooting them flirty glances with big pouty lips, and pressing her ass into mine.

A young kid who was probably just legal came up to us. He had dark hair, bloodshot eyes, and looked like the sort to pull drugs out of his pocket and try to sell it to us.

Which he did.

He extended his palm which held two tiny capsules in it and grinned up at us. “Ladies. Try a sample. See what you think. This is the best shit you can get if you’re looking to really feel the music and your body.”

I shook my head.

He was persistent and tried to push the pills into my hand.

Penny slapped his hand away. “Get lost, man. We’re not interested. We can have fun without your mystery pills.”

Penny’s attitude sent him packing, and it only took a few more minutes for a couple guys to come up to us and offer drinks. Drinks were at least better than drugs.

I opened my mouth to say no, but Penny insisted. I had no interest in letting a stranger bring me over a cocktail. Sure, it could be just vodka and orange juice, but it could also have hidden ingredients, and I wasn’t keen on waking up on a stranger’s couch in the morning. I grabbed Penny’s wrist and shook my head.

She rolled her eyes at me and flashed one of the guys, a blond with a surfer vibe, an apologetic smile. Then, she pulled me close. “We go to the bar with them and order, silly. It goes from the bartender’s hand to my hand. I’m not going to just accept something from a stranger. Who do you think I am?”

“Oh,” I said rather lamely.

Next, she was pulling me off the dance floor and tailing after the surfer and his friend, who looked more like a lawyer. Gross. Lawyers.

Penny ordered us each a glass of water and a fancy purple drink I didn’t know the name of. She had me drink the water before sipping on the purple concoction, which was surprisingly delicious. While we drank, we went to one of the standing tables and crowded around it with the guys.

The surfer ran his fingers through his shaggy blond hair. “You ladies are new around here, huh?”

I resisted rolling my eyes again. What a smooth come-on, admitting that you come to this place frequently enough to recognize new “meat.”

Penny missed the very obvious red flag. “Yep. My friend here just got a new job, so we are out to celebrate in style.”

His blue eyes slid to me. “A new job?”

I nodded. I had no plans on telling him where I’d be working. “Yeah, a position in software development.”

Penny blinked at me but didn’t out me for lying. The surfer and his lawyer buddy exchanged a look. The lawyer-type guy had slicked back brown hair and deep eyes. He was clean-shaven, which I realized upon closer inspection was because he couldn’t quite grow any hair on his face. He smiled at me. “So, you’re a smarty pants, hm?”

I shrugged. I’m smarter than you. But nobody will fucking hire me.

“Well, drink up ladies. Let’s hit that dance floor again. I want to see that body of yours in action,” the surfer purred at Penny.

She sucked her drink back and encouraged me to do the same. I wasn’t at all interested in either of these guys, but if Penny was enjoying their company, I didn’t want to spoil it for her. There was no harm in dancing with some strangers if that’s all it was. Dancing. If she wanted to bring one of them home with her, that was just fine, but I wasn’t picking up the one left behind to ride him on the couch. No way in hell. He could saunter on home or pick another girl.

Both guys were surprisingly smooth on the dance floor. They were also polite. Neither of them crossed any boundaries, and soon I was laughing along with Penny as the lawyer spun me around tightly and then pulled me into his side to rest his hand on my lower back.

“You’re really beautiful, you know that?” he called over the music.

Compliments from men were new to me. I stammered under his flattery and felt my cheeks growing hot. “Oh. Uh. Erm. Thank you?”

He chuckled. “I’m having fun with you, but I hope you know I don’t expect anything. Sometimes, it’s nice to just dance. You know?”

I was astounded by his kindness. This was not the sort of experience I’d been expecting when I came to Kadia. I was sure I’d have to beat them off with a stick. I smiled and tucked my hair behind my ears. “It is nice.”

Penny came over to us and tapped my shoulder. “Hey, it’s almost midnight, and this place is about to get even wilder. Can we grab some fresh air first?”

The lawyer let me go. “I’ll be waiting here for you, pretty girl.”

I smiled over my shoulder at him as Penny and I slipped through the other dancers and made for a glowing red exit sign. The door read “Emergency Exit Only,” and I tugged on Penny’s elbow. “Maybe we should go out through the front?”

“No, it’s all right. I come out this way all the time when I come here. There’s a little lane in the back. It’s always empty, and this door is never locked, so we can come right back in. Nobody will be out here to heckle us.”

Penny pushed her way out through the door, and the cool night air washed over me.

It was incredibly refreshing, and I realized I was actually pretty drunk. I giggled and leaned up against the club wall. “Thanks for getting me out of the house tonight, Penny. You were right. I needed this.”

“I know. I’m always right.” Penny raked her fingers through her blond locks and shook her curls out. Like me, she was probably sweating, and the hair at the nape of her neck was more than likely damp.

I did the same and shook my hair out. I flipped my head over to let the night air kiss the back of my neck. “Oh, man. That feels so good.”

Penny did the same, and we stood there like hunched over idiots airing out our sweaty necks in a dingy alley that smelled like wet cardboard and cigarette butts.

Then, the side door we had come through blew open and slammed against the wall.

I yelped and stumbled back as a big bald man came stumbling out. His eyes were wild, and when he looked up and saw us, his lips curled in a smile, revealing teeth that were outlined in red. Blood. Was there a fight inside? Had someone hit him?

The bald man rushed us. Penny screamed. I screamed.

I tried to get out of the way, but his massive hand caught my elbow, and he hauled me toward him. I kicked and fought him as he backed up to put his back against the wall of the building on the other side of the alley so that we were facing the door.

More panic welled up inside me when I saw six men come out into the lane with us. They were big and mean looking. One of them had a bloody lip. Another held a long, curved pocket knife. The biggest of them stepped forward. He had a thick brown beard and hard, angry eyes, and he was looking right through me.

Penny let out a furious howl and went after the man holding me. He grunted and kicked her off, and she fell to the pavement with a grunt.

“Stay there, Penny!” I yelled.

She stayed. Her eyes were wide and angry, and her palms were cut up from her fall. “Let her go, you ugly bastard!” she screamed.

Then, something sharp was pressed to my throat, and the whole alley fell silent. All eyes were on me—and the way the man with the beard was staring at me made him more afraid of him than the man holding the knife to my jugular.