LOGINCole.My eyes adjust to the darkness beyond the lamplight, scanning for movement.Nothing.But I know what I heard.I stand slowly, silently, and move across the room in the blind spots—the areas where someone hiding wouldn't be able to see me clearly.I reach the wardrobe and position myself to the side of the door.One.Two.Three.I yank it open.Someone explodes out of the wardrobe, swinging at me. Their fist connects with my jaw and I stumble back, cursing.The figure rushes past me toward my bedroom door."Fuck!" I shake my head, tasting blood.I glance back at Quinn. She's still asleep somehow, her face peaceful.Good. I don't need her waking up to this.I don't need any of the guys waking up either.I follow the intruder out into the hallway, watching them take the stairs two at a time.They're fast, but I'm faster.I let them get outside first—better to handle this away from the house—then I chase them down.They're running toward the tree line behind the property, probably h
CadeI'm thirteen years old and the warehouse smells like rust and something rotting.Cole is standing over a man—or what used to be a man. Now he's just a mess of blood and exposed bone and parts that shouldn't be visible."Beautiful, isn't it?" Cole asks, not looking away from his work. He's holding a knife, the blade dripping red onto the concrete floor. "The human body is such a fascinating thing. So fragile. So easily broken."I stare at the body. At the way the head sits at an unnatural angle. At the pool of blood spreading across the floor like spilled paint.I feel nothing.No horror. No disgust. No fear.Just... boredom, maybe. A mild curiosity about how long this is going to take."Cade." Cole's voice pulls my attention. "Come closer."I walk over, my shoes squelching in the blood."What do you feel right now?" he asks, tilting his head like I'm the interesting specimen."Nothing.""Nothing?" He smiles. "Not even a little bit of excitement? Fear? Anything?"I shake my head.
Quinn “Kiss me.”The words leave my mouth on a desperate exhale, a plea wrapped in a breath. My legs fall open for him, an invitation he’s been waiting for. The world outside this little alcove—the distant chatter of the people around us, the risk of being seen—it all dissolves into a dull hum. All I see is Cade. All I feel is the raw, magnetic pull of him.His eyes, usually so sharp and commanding, are impossibly soft. They hold mine for a heartbeat, two, and then he crashes into me. His mouth isn’t gentle. It’s a claiming. A fucking conquest. His tongue pushes past my lips, tasting of whiskey and pure, unadulterated want. I moan into him, my fingers tangling in the thick, dark hair at the nape of his neck, pulling him closer.His hands are everywhere at once. One cups my breast through my thin top, his thumb circling my nipple until it’s a hard, aching peak. He growls against my mouth, a low, visceral sound that goes straight to my cunt.“Need these out,” he rasps, his voice roug
CadeWe stop at the park and Quinn climbs off the bike, immediately groaning."Oh my God," she mutters, her legs shaky.I get off and move to her side just as she staggers. My hands catch her waist, steadying her."I squeezed you the entire ride," she grumbles, leaning into me. "My arms are going to be sore tomorrow. And my thighs. Everything hurts. This is your fault.""You were scared," I say simply."Of course I was scared! We were going like a hundred miles an hour—""Sixty.""—weaving through traffic like a maniac—""I was being careful.""—and you kept accelerating every time I tightened my grip like you were enjoying my terror!"I was. A little.She's still complaining, going on about "death machines" and "reckless endangerment" and "I can't believe I trusted you," and she's so fucking cute when she's worked up like this that I can't help myself.I kiss her.She pauses mid-sentence, making a small surprised sound against my lips.I deepen the kiss immediately, one hand cupping
Quinn"Where'd you go?"I'm sitting cross-legged on my bed when he walks in, and something about him makes me pause mid-scroll through my phone."Cole," Cade mumbles, but his eyes are focused on me with an intensity that makes every hair on my neck stand on end.My mouth goes dry. Actually, scratch that—my mouth almost waters while between my legs already beats it to the punch.Oh God.My breath catches in my throat. "But you said we weren't going."He doesn't answer immediately. Instead, he takes off his jacket with deliberate slowness, maintaining that burning eye contact the entire time.The jacket drops to the floor.He's in just his tank top now—black, tight, showing off arms that have no business looking that good.He starts climbing onto the bed. Slowly. Purposefully. Like a predator stalking prey."What are you doing?" I ask, my voice coming out breathier than I intended.He keeps coming closer, not saying a word. Just looking at me like I'm something he wants to devour.My he
QuinnDear X,Hi. It's been a while.I know you stopped replying years ago, and honestly, I don't blame you. I probably would have done the same thing. We were just kids with a weird pen pal assignment, and then life happened and we both moved on.But I'm writing to you anyway because I need someone to talk to, and for some reason, you're the only person I can think of who might understand. Or at least, the version of you I remember from those letters might have understood.Are you okay? I hope you are. I hope life has been kind to you, wherever you are. I hope you're happy.I'm... I'm not sure if I am.Things have been complicated lately.My mom showed up a few weeks ago. I don't think I ever told you about her—about how she left when I was younger, chose alcohol over us, just disappeared one day and never really came back. Well, she showed up at my university. Drunk. Caused a scene. Hit me in front of everyone.It was humiliating. Devastating. All the things I'd been trying not to f







