HOPEWe finished lunch and Nicco sat down with his laptop again. I wandered out onto the little balcony, amusing myself with figuring out what all of the buildings were. If I leaned way out and looked even farther, I imagined I could see Central Park. I was leaning out when I was grabbed from behind.“Jeeze, Hope. You could fall!” Nicco put me back on my feet. I shook my head at him, laughing at his fear.“No, I’m good with heights.”Nicco shrugged. “I’m not. So, please, don’t do that.”I sighed, following him back into the room. “You’re exceptionally grumpy. What’s wrong?”Nicco pointed to his laptop. “It’s this spreadsheet,” he admitted. “I know that the numbers are wrong, but I don’t know where to even start.”I sat down on the couch. “Mind if I look? I’m really good with numbers.”Nicco hesitated a moment and then shrugged, handing over his laptop. “Wouldn’t hurt anything,” he admitted. I popped open the laptop and started scrolling through the pages. When I said I

HOPEWe pulled into Nicco’s estate late at night. We had spent a little too much time at the pizza place. The pizza was as incredible as Vinnie had promised, and I wowed everyone with my billiards playing prowess. The boys had a few beers, and I had a lot of Dr. Pepper. Then we had to stop a few times on the drive so we could all pee.The turn off from the highway was a surprise. It was dark and, if I was driving, I would have missed it. I think they leave it overgrown so that no one ventures down the road. It was bumpy and rutted, but Caleb seemed to know the trick to getting through with only a few jostlings. The estate was surrounded by a huge wall and a monitored gate. Caleb pulled up and a grumpy looking security guard came out and shined a flashlight into the interior of our car. He nodded at Caleb and left the light lingering on me a little too long. I heard a growl and looked over in surprise. It sounded like it had come from Nicco but I knew that wasn’t possible.

HOPEI felt Nicco slide out of the bed a few hours later. I looked at my watch. It said 3:02am. “Is everything okay?” I asked, concerned. He leaned forward and kissed me on the forehead. “Yeah. I just have some business to do.” He padded over to the walk-in closet and I saw the light illuminate underneath the door, briefly, before it was extinguished and he crept out. He gave me another kiss on the forehead and softly closed the door behind him. I woke up again shortly after eight. I stretched, disappointed that Nicco hadn’t climbed back into bed with me. I stood up and checked the sitting room. I wasn’t surprised that he wasn’t out there, but I was delighted to see that someone had dropped off my tote of clothing. What I had been wearing was decidedly wrinkled.I took a quick shower and braided my hair and then selected a tank top and some cut off shorts. I slid my feet into no show socks and tennis shoes and threw on a thin, button-down shirt that I didn’t bother to bu

  HOPEI had the rest of the day to explore while Nicco set up my new office.Part of me was excited about having a job and earning my keep.  I also loved that I was helping Nicco figure out who was stealing from him.  The other part of me was nervous about what could possibly be asked of me.  I knew he was keeping secrets from me.   And I was also concerned about the legalities of everything.  Nicco could do what he wanted but I wasn’t going to cross any of those lines.   When I lived with my stepdad, I was in a prison.  I had no interest in spending time in another.I left Nicco’s office and took the first exit to the outside that I could find.  It was a little used door that opened out onto a small patio that was flanked by tall bushes, making the entrance private.  I looked up to see cameras pointed at the door, so I gave a little finger wave

HOPE I drifted in and out of consciousness. I was crazy tired, and my throat was so sore. I had a vague recollection of someone stuffing something down my throat and choking me, but it was fuzzy. I moaned. Someone was instantly there, wiping my head with a cloth. I could hear Nicco, speaking in a worried tone. “She’s so hot, Charlie. Is she okay?” “She’ll be fine, Alpha. She just has a little fever, that’s all. That’s how human bodies deal with infections. They don’t heal like we do. As soon as the doctor figures out what poisoned her, we can treat her. Shouldn’t be long, now.” My brain was screaming at me to pay attention because something important was just said, but I drifted off again in a fog. The next time I woke up I felt a lot better. The light was barely peeking into the room. Nicco was laying on the bed next to me, asleep, and Charlie was in a chair, bolt upright, his head leaning against the wall. His eyes opened when I moved. “You’re awake,” he said, s