Thank you.” I get off Damon’s bike and hand the helmet back to him.

My legs are shaking. I can’t tell if it’s because I just had the bike engine vibrate between them for the past half an hour or because Damon’s making me nervous. Probably a little bit of both.

A cocky smile spreads across Damon’s gorgeous face. He looks like he knows exactly what’s swirling in my mind right now.

He takes the helmet. “See you soon, princess.”

That doesn’t sound like a question. Doesn’t sound like an invitation either.

More like a statement of fact. Or even . . . a command.

The thought sends a thrill down my spine.

When—I mean, if. If I go to Damon’s place . . . will he issue any more commands? What kind of commands will they be?

I’m dying of curiosity already.

“I haven’t said I’m going,” I say, giving Damon what I hope is the cool, collected smile of someone who isn’t affected by his arrogant, bad-boy charm.

“I know,” he says. “But we both know you are.”

Damn it. He thinks he’s got me all figured out.

I open my mouth to protest.

But before I get to say anything, Damon puts his hand on my waist and yanks me close. As my hips press against his thigh, I can feel the bike engine idling through the vibrations. I swallow the words I wanted to say.

Damon smirks as he stares sharply into my eyes. He makes me feel naked—not just because he’s stripping me bare with his eyes, but also because he seems to be reading my thoughts.

He leans closer . . . and I let my eyelids flutter shut.

His kiss starts out as gentle as the first drop of rain. I didn’t expect that. I thought Damon would be the kind of guy who would just take what he wants and be rough about it.

I lean in until I find his firm lips. I’ve been checking out these lips for years, glancing sideways as we sat on the couch watching something on TV with my brother. And now . . . Now, I’m kissing those very lips.

Damon teases my lips and traces them with his tongue before pulling away again.

Every time I inch closer, Damon kisses me a little harder, with a little more pressure, before he stops, leaving me wanting more.

He swipes his tongue between my lips. He nibbles on my bottom lip. Then, finally, when I open for him, he sweeps inside and takes me fully. He traps my face in his hands and claims my mouth, our tongues twisting together as a bright flame burns hot in my center.

When he pulls back, my hands are gripping his arms, and I’m panting for breath.

I want more . . . God, I need more.

Damon glances down at my lips and smiles as he traces them with his finger. Every cell in my body is pulsating, yearning for him. Before I know what I’m doing, I kiss his finger.

Damon’s smile grows wider. When he pulls me closer, I instinctively part my lips, hoping he’ll kiss me again.

Instead, he presses his forehead against mine and whispers, “See you soon, princess. I can’t wait to pick up where we left off.”

I stand there, staring at him dumbly for a couple of seconds before I collect myself enough to say, “Uh . . . Yeah. Good night.”

“Good night, princess.” Damon puts on his helmet and turns to me as he revs the bike engine.

I can only see his dark eyes behind the visor as I give him a small wave with my hand. I watch Damon’s back grow smaller and smaller as he takes off into the dark night.

I’ve known Damon practically my whole life. We grew up together, side by side, although in parallel worlds.

But I feel like I don’t know him. Like this whole time, I’ve only seen a sliver of his face through the visor in his helmet.

Who is Damon?

Close as he was with my brother, I don’t think he ever revealed too much to him either. He’s always seemed mysterious, which only makes me want to know everything there is to know about him.

And now, he’s inviting me into his world.

I turn to walk up the marble stairs leading to the main entrance of my parents’ mansion and realize my chauffeur and my bodyguard are standing just a few feet away from me.

They’re smoking and chatting by the car, seemingly absorbed in their own little conversation, but I can’t help wondering if they were staring at me and Damon making out.

Did they see my cheeks flushing, my breath catching, my eyes begging for more? I was too drunk on Damon to pay attention to my surroundings.

I quicken my pace and get inside, away from their prying eyes.

Damon’s right. I hate to admit it, but I need to get away. I’m always being watched.

It’s not normal. My whole life’s not normal.

I live with my parents in a big mansion. There are more bedrooms here than a small hotel.

Every room is tastefully decorated, with the designer coming back every few years to update the interiors. Currently, my parents are into chunky wood, glass panels, reflective surfaces, and dark, metal hardware.

The house looks pretty different from the way it did a few years ago before I left home for college. The white marble is a classic feature that has always been there for as long as I can remember, though.

My parents employ dozens of employees, both to take care of my dad’s business and to handle housekeeping for my mom.

Most girls my age are living on their own, partying with their friends and sleeping around with guys.

It’s not that I want to sleep around. Guys have tried to get me into their beds before, but I’ve never wanted them. Guys my own age seem so dumb and immature, unlike Damon.

Damon’s a man. A dark, dangerous, unpredictable, mysterious man who makes my heart race.

“Where have you been?” Dad asks when I walk across the living room on my way to the stairs.

He’s sitting on the couch where I waited for Damon earlier today, his hands holding a newspaper while a pair of reading glasses perches on my nose. Rosa is curled up beside him, probably persuading him to give her something. He looks like a normal dad when he’s like this.

“Out,” I say, not stopping and not willing to share details of my incredible afternoon with Damon. I want to keep some things about my life to myself.

“Ask her where,” Rosa whispers.

She’s so skinny these days her face is mostly taken up by her eyes and teeth when she grins like this. Her dark hair has lost its luster too. I know it’s not just because of heartbreak over the guy she went crazy for; it’s probably due to all the drugs her bodyguard tells me she’s been using.

“Out where?” Dad asks, peering at me over his glasses. It’s almost dinner time, and he works from home, but he’s still wearing his suit.

“Just . . . to a diner. Got some coffee.” I maintain my pace as I reach the bottom of the stairs and start climbing. Maybe I can do this. Maybe I can stall him.

“There’s plenty of coffee in the kitchen. Your sister bought that expensive coffeemaker and nobody’s ever used it,” he says.

“I told you, I’m still trying to find the right coffee beans,” Rosa pouts. “It’s hard to find organic, locally-sourced coffee beans.”

“It’s different, Dad.” I put one foot in front of the other and continue to climb the stairs. I’m almost halfway to the second floor.

“Elena. Stop right there,” Dad says in that voice he uses when he means business.

Rosa giggles.

I sigh and turn around. I’ll bet my peers don’t get interrogated when they come home from a quick coffee date.

“Where did you go?” My dad’s hair has turned gray and lines have etched themselves into his skin, but he still treats me the same way he did when he was a much younger man.

“A diner downtown. It’s called The Eatery, if you must know.” I paste on a smile on my face.

“You went there on your own?”

Rosa shakes her head with exaggerated disapproval. “Tsk, tsk.”

“No,” I answer simply, refusing to volunteer any information on my own.

“Who did you go with?” Dad asks.

“A friend.”

“Ooh . . . It must be a guy,” Rosa says.

“Does this friend have a name?”

“Of course.” I know I’m being stubborn and maybe a little bit childish, but I’m getting tired of being treated like a nine-year-old.

“What’s your friend’s name?”

“Damon,” I say finally. I know he won’t let me leave until he gets all the answers he wants.

Dad folds his newspaper up and puts it aside on the couch. He takes off his reading glasses and stares at me. With a frown on his face, he asks, “Damon?”

“Yeah.” I keep my voice as relaxed as I can, ignoring the grin on Rosa’s face.

It’s not a big deal. It was just coffee. (Well, and a kiss. But my dad doesn’t need to know about that.)

“Damon? The guy who works for me?” Dad speaks slowly. I know from experience that Dad tends to hide his irritation underneath a calm demeanor.

I go with it and pretend there’s nothing wrong, too. “Yeah.”

What can I say? I learned from the best.

“Why?” he asks.

“After his meeting with you, we got to talking and decided we should catch up.”

Dad lets out a deep sigh, sounding like I’ve disappointed him when I’ve only gone to get coffee with a guy—as far as he knows, anyway.

“You should stay away from him,” he says.

I cross my arms over my chest. “Why? Matteo and I used to hang out with him all the time.”

“That was different.”

“Dad. I’m twenty-three. You can’t keep telling me what to do,” I say. “This isn’t how most people my age are treated by their parents.”

“Their parents probably don’t work with dangerous men,” Dad says, raising his voice. He takes a deep breath, and then another. “I know it’s not your fault. You didn’t ask for this life. Believe me I know. But it is what it is. You need to be more careful than most people.”

“Okay.” I give Dad a smile.

“Good,” he says. “Now, go get changed. It’s time for dinner.”

“Will do.” I walk up the stairs and leave the uncomfortable conversation.

As much as I resent the rules I have to abide, I don’t blame my dad for them. I know he didn’t choose his line of work to make life hard for us on purpose.

Still, I yearn for freedom. I don’t want my dad’s work to dictate the kind of life I live or the people I choose to surround myself with.

Besides, my dad was the one who brought Damon home and introduced him to me and my siblings in the first place.

I didn’t give Damon an answer, but I’ve already made my decision.

I’m going to sneak out to Damon’s place.

This isn’t about my dad. This is about me wanting the freedom that most people take for granted. And . . . okay, it’s also about my fantasy of having Damon be my first.

Just imagine . . . Days from now, my wish could come true. I could be in Damon’s arms, both of us naked while he’s on top of me, thrusting inside me . . .