Chapter 1

For five years, she'd been in a secret relationship with her best friend's little brother.

Always with plenty of spending money on hand, he'd taken her to all sorts of places, where they'd done all sorts of things together.

Stacy Rivers couldn't even go to the restroom without getting cornered by him against the washbasin, the young man's arms encircled around her slender waist.

Stacy's eyes swam. "Joseph, not so rough…"

Joseph Dorne chuckled lightly, then leaned down and took one earlobe between his teeth, as he taunted her. "Is this too much for you, already? We're only just getting started, you know…"

A surge of pleasure rose up from within. Stacy gave in to the feeling, her protests falling silent.

Over the years, they'd made lots of little memories in lots of places, but she was ever the one scrambling to keep up with his insatiable desires. Truly, a younger lover wanted it all the time, and wanted it in so many ways…

Joseph peered at her with seething intent, hands caressing her hips hungrily. "How can it feel so good, just to touch you? I can't get enough… it's like an addiction. No other man is allowed to lay their hands upon you, I trust you understand. You belong to me."

Stacy had long known that he was the possessive sort. She gave him a smile and a kiss. "You know I'm yours, and yours alone."

They went for several rounds until Joseph was good and satisfied.

He fastened his belt once more, glowing with manly triumph. As he turned to leave, she caught him by the hand.

"I'll be turning thirty soon. People have been frantic about whether I'm ever going to get married. I've honored your wish to keep quiet about what's going on between us, but now my parents have a bunch of suitors lined up for me, and… do you have anything to say about all this?"

Joseph hesitated, then turned around and planted a little kiss on her lips.

"Please be patient for my sake, Stacy," he whispered, in gentle reassurance. "You'll hear my marriage proposal, real soon."

These words dispelled the anxiety in Stacy's heart.

She watched him turn off at the end of the aisle, then collected her clothes and put them on once again. She checked her handbag, straightened up, and then slowly made her way back to the party.

As she was just coming around the corner, she heard a raucous peal of laughter.

"Joseph, my man! We could all hear you back there, giving her the business! The way that hussy moaned… hah! It gave us all the shivers!"

"Stacy Rivers with that figure, that waist… yowza! Any man would get hooked on that taste! You know how many guys have their sights set on her? But no… only our boy Joseph has what it takes to score that forbidden fruit! Although… how many years has she been with you, now? Don't you think you've had enough fun with her already?"

What? What did they mean by, 'had enough fun with her already?'

Feeling a sudden chill, Stacy stood there, listening in confusion.

Someone inside seemed to ask a question, and then:

"Well, of course he's only having fun with her! Joseph's always been in love with that girl, from when we were in high school together! We were all roaring for him to go for it! I mean, can you imagine any girl saying no to this pretty face? But he was so serious about the whole thing, it was unbelievable! No experience, he said! No experience flirting with girls, or being in a relationship… or having sex! He simply refused to court that girl until he was sure he wouldn't mess things up… and that's why he picked up some other woman for a few years: it's all just for practice!"

"And now, guess what? The girl of his dreams will be returning from abroad, soon! Joseph, you've had your fun with her for years, now… aren't you going to break it off with Stacy, yet? Instead, the two of you are still going at it as passionately as ever! Don't tell me—it's become something real?"

In the questioning silence that followed, there was a thunk as Joseph set down his beer mug, then drawled, "No, she's only for practice. Basically a toy. Nothing more."

He'd said that so callously… Stacy felt as though she'd been stabbed through the heart with a knife. Her limbs felt numb, while every breath she drew seemed to fill her lungs with burning agony. It was all she could do to remain standing.

But there was no time for her to process these sudden emotions: The voices and laughter were rapidly drawing closer. Fearing to bump into any of them in this moment, she placed both hands onto the wall beside her, pushed herself around to face in the opposite direction… and then she fled, as quickly as she could manage.

As a full-grown woman, almost thirty years of age, it should be disgraceful to cry. Stacy stumbled aimlessly through the pouring rain outside, her thoughts and feelings roiling about in a chaotic jumble.

She'd first met Joseph during her first year in Summit University, where she'd become best friends with Jeanne Dorne.

Hanging out regularly at Jeanne's place, she'd naturally become acquainted with her younger brother, Joseph.

At first sight, she'd been utterly smitten by him.

However, romance had been the furthest thing from her mind. She was four years older than him. He was Jeanne's little brother. And so, Stacy had treated him as a little brother, too.

After graduation, she'd been eager to prove her own independence, and so she'd begun a career here in the city of Balmora.

Her looks constantly attracted the attention of all sorts of men. One time, during a social event, she realized she'd taken a spiked drink, and immediately fled to a nearby hotel, calling Jeanne to come to her rescue.

In her distress, she'd selected the wrong name from her contacts list, and called Joseph instead.

When Joseph arrived, Stacy had instructed him to fetch a doctor. Instead, gazing intently at her with those mesmerizing eyes of his, the young man removed his shirt. That night, the barely legal teen had helped her to alleviate the effects of the aphrodisiac drug she'd been given, in a more straightforward fashion.

That following morning, Stacy had woken up feeling as though she'd committed a terrible crime. She'd hurriedly made to leave, hoping they could both pretend that nothing had ever happened… but then Joseph had embraced her from behind, kissing her gently on the nape of her neck, while whispering, "Had your fun, now you're just gonna run? I won't allow it."

Following that incident, she'd tried to evade him, but he was relentless in his advances. Eventually, she'd succumbed to his charms, and they'd started seeing each other in secret.

The past five years, they'd gotten along perfectly, the passion between them never dissipating in the slightest. Stacy had come to believe that they'd make it all the way. She'd been eagerly awaiting his proposal, so that they could finally move on to the next stage.

But she'd been kept waiting.

Pressured by her family, she'd finally asked him about it. She hadn't expected, though, that there was nothing at all in store for her! He already had his heart set on another woman; as for Stacy, she'd never been anything besides a toy for him to 'practice' with!

She found her way home in a daze, then curled herself up in a corner, gradually freezing to death as she thought about nothing in particular.

She just remained like that, losing track of time completely, until the ringing of a phone shattered that icy silence.

She fished out her phone and took the call. The voices of her parents came through, somber with concern.

"Darling, it's been weeks! Have you reached a decision yet… about meeting one of these men?"

Stacy's eyes fell upon a photograph on the table: one she'd taken with Joseph, to commemorate their fifth anniversary together.

She sucked in a long breath of air. "Alright, I'll do it."

From here on out, she'd be starting a new life for herself.

Joseph was free to go pursue his old flame, or whatever.

And the two of them would never have anything to do with each other, ever again.