“I was rooting for you,” she smiled. He looked up at her and couldn’t help but laugh. It was a sad sound.“Thanks. I appreciate that, but I think we all knew it was a lost cause from the start. It was always going to be him.”“You know, the best way to get over someone is to get under someone else,” she teased. “I said that to Audrey once about you.”Damian blushed. Audrey’s friends were so different from her. They were bold and brash. But in all the best ways. When things calmed down and they were able to restart their lives, he hoped he’d still be a part of the group.“That’s… nice of you.”“Becca likes you. She said, and I quote, ‘that man is so fine. When I’m all healed up, I’d like for him to break me again’,” she wiggled her eyebrows.“Oh my God,” Damian’s face was bright red. “You girls are too much.”“You have no idea. Listen, I know it hurts now. But it will pass, and she’ll always be your friend. And me too now. And Mark. You were there for her when I couldn’t be.”“Thanks,”

“What?”“From what I heard about you before, you seemed like a total asshole. Just another rich, playboy jerk that thought he could do whatever he wanted. I heard all about those run-ins at the club when Megan was still around.”“I was,” Lucien said with a sad smile. That seemed like an entire lifetime ago. Who even was that guy? “I was all those things.”“I used to daydream about running you over with my car.”“Maybe you should have. I would have sued you though.”Becca laughed.“I’m glad I was wrong,” she smiled at him. “There is something I wanted to talk to you about too.”“Sure.” Lucien pulled up and chair and sat beside her bed.“There was a point while we were captive when your… when the woman involved was attacking Audrey. I think she wanted Audrey to say she didn’t love you.”“I understand,”Lucien hung his head. “She said whatever she needed to say to keep herself safe.”“No, you don’t understand. She wouldn’t say it. Even though she was terrified, she said it out loud. She s

“I… I don’t want you to stop.”He’d never heard a sweeter melody. His mouth descended on hers, capturing her lips in a searing kiss. Their bodies were alight with passion as the kiss deepened. Their lips mashed against each other, as if trying they were trying to destroy each other. It was hungry and desperate and spoke of months of closeted longing. Her hands wound his hair, reveling at the familiar feel of his thick strands. Lucien’s arms looped around her back, pressing her body into his.An urgent beeping filled the room, forcing them apart. Audrey’s heart rate was through the roof, and any minute and a gaggle of medical personnel would rush into the room if she didn’t calm down. Their foreheads touched as they caught their breath.“Sorry,” he said, not sounding sorry at all. “That was building up for a while.”“Yeah,” she panted. “I had almost forgotten what that felt like.”“Forgot?” Lucien pulled back, affronted. “Well, I guess I’ll just have to remind you.”Audrey giggled as h

“Who is at the damn top?” The more he read, the more disturbing things got. Eugene had committed some horrific crimes all to appease whoever had loaned him the money to pay off his gambling debts.“Rest is distress, you vile sack of shit.”The journal described robberies, hostile takeovers, more kidnappings, murders. Each entry more monstrous than the last. One particular entry stood out.‘I’m not stupid. Lucien has figured out by now that I’m behind the kidnapping of his precious woman. It would have gone by less messy if I had paid attention. The last time I saw him he was dating Mia. Imagine my surprise when I kidnapped her first and she told me that Lucien had essentially kicked her out of his life. Sad for her, but fortuitous for me. A woman scorned is an amazing weapon. Mia has turned out to be an invaluable ally. While spouting words of undying love for Lucien, she was more than willing to assist me by planting the drugs in his car. A drastic distraction, but a necessary one.M

His grounding personality along with Becca’s fire would mesh greatly. It was a perfect match in her eyes, and it was her fervent hope that Becca and Damian would be able to find happiness in each other.“You two sound like you’re having a great time,” Lucien teased as he walked back into the room.“Just plotting against you,” Becca answered.“Should I run now?”“Not yet,” Becca looked him up and down, as though she was scanning him. “You don’t have anything to be afraid of.” She made her way out of the room. Before she left, she turned back and looked at them. “…for now.”“I thought Tracy was bad,” Lucien shuddered after Becca left. “She is terrifying.”“You have no idea,” Audrey smiled fondly. “So, where did you go?”“I was taking care of a few things for work.” There was a sort of melancholy in his voice that made Audrey pause.“You mentioned you wanted to talk to me about something last night?” she prodded.“Yeah. I was wondering where you were going to go. You know, after leaving