CHAPTER 1

Salma 

He was my best friend and also the sexiest valedictorian I had ever laid my eyes on. He was perfect—tall with green eyes that made me feel like I could swim in them for hours; lips that held all my secrets except the one that weighed heavily on me; a gait that could carry all of me without a groan. 

“Salma?” He called my name in a singsong voice that made me feel dreamy. 

I cleared my throat. The words were stuck in my throat. 

“I… I…” I stuttered, “Congratulations on becoming valedictorian.” 

Brandon furrowed his eyes. He had expected more, but he only smiled, “Thank you.” 

Coward. 

My inner voice rang in my head. 

I wanted to say the words. More than anything, I wanted to tell him how much I loved him but I could not bring myself to say the words. 

I watched him walk away, his graduation gown swaying well above his ankles. I took my seat on the podium and waited for the ceremony to start. 

“She’s such a snob,” I heard my stepsister whisper to her friend, Marilyn, behind me. They proceeded to insult me in loud whispers but I blocked out the noise by allowing my mind to wander off to the day I had met Brandon at some frat party. Marilyn, my sister’s best friend, had poured a glass of vodka on my head but Brandon had stepped in just in time before I got soaked. 

I smiled as I remembered how that had been the beginning of our friendship. He was the golden boy on campus—perfect grades, perfect looks, and great sportsmanship. And somehow, awkward clumsy me with my southern accent and braces had managed to become his best friend. 

To my best friend, who gave me the courage to survive college.

I looked up. Brandon had referenced me in his speech and that brought a faint smile to my lips. My happy moment was threatened by my sister's voice whispering, ‘bitch’ which I knew was meant for me. I tried to keep my mind on Brandon and I made up my mind not to chicken out when I got my chance to tell him about my feelings. What was the worst that would happen? He would reject me, but it wouldn't matter because two months from now, I would be at John Hopkins, far away from all that drama. 

I would never heal but it would not matter. 

The ceremony was over very fast. This was my time. I had to do it now. But he was surrounded by just about everyone wishing to tell him just how proud they were of him. Finally, he spotted me in the midst of the small crowd and waved at me cheerfully, meandering out of the crowd towards me. 

“How was I up there?” he asked, “I was nervous as hell.” 

“You were great,” I returned in a flat tone. 

His eyebrows creased in a frown. 

“You don't sound too well,” his voice hinted at his worry, “is this about your parents not being…” 

“I like you,” I said, cutting him off before he could complete his sentence. 

He was quiet for what felt like eternity to me. Then suddenly he broke into a wide smile, “You do?” 

“Yes,” I said, my voice trembling softly. 

I did not dare to look at his face so I was caught by surprise to feel his lips on mine. I looked up to meet his eyes and I saw that the walls he always had up had been broken. In his eyes I saw only lust and desire. He was looking into my eyes with such hunger that it made me yelp. 

“Oh my goodness!” he looked embarrassed, “I thought…” 

It shut him up again, tiptoeing on my feet so that I could reach his face and touch my lips with his. The entire world faded away and the sound of the others exchanging congratulations dulled away as our lips melded into each other. 

We only pulled away when we were out of breath. 

He laughed and I joined in. This had to be the happiest day of my life. 

“My parents are out, not here anyway, and I don't really have anything planned…” I let my voice trail off. 

“You want me to ditch the graduation party my parents have planned to have sex?” he asked, a tinge of naughty undertone in his voice. 

“Yes,” I said. I had nothing to lose and he liked me back! 

Brandon liked me back! He liked me back! 

I said it over and over again in my mind. 

“I'm in,” he giggled, sounding just as excited as I was. 

We slipped away quietly before anyone could notice that Brandon was gone. Nobody cared if I disappeared. I was the invisible girl that shadowed Brandon—the one who Brandon always had to protect. 

But tonight, I was going to be more than that. I was going to be his. 

I was skittish as he drove us away in the convertible he had gotten as an early graduation present from his parents. I loved his convertible but not as much as I loved its owner. I loved how the wind plastered my hair on my face and neck, I liked how Brandon drove with urgency, making the houses we passed disappear like dominoes. 

He pulled up into my parents' driveway and just as I suspected, no one was home. Brandon kissed me when we reached the front step of the small Victorian-style home. It was one of the many homes my parents owned across the country. 

The kiss was deeper this time, our tongues locked in a battle of passion as our hands desperately sought to undo buttons and pull down zips. 

“You're beautiful,” Brandon whispered in my ear, biting on it softly. I felt his hands slip into my dress to unclasp my bra. I felt the slight pressure of his hands working to undo the clasp of my bra and in the next second, he pulled it out and dropped it on the floor. We were not even fully inside the house yet. 

He pushed me softly with his body so that we crossed the threshold, then he kicked the door behind with his leg, not letting go of me for even a second. 

The door firmly shut behind me, he trailed hot wet kisses from the nape of my neck to the mound of my breast. 

“I want you.” his sexy husky tone broke any form of self-control that was left in my body. 

I moaned as his tongue settled on my nape, licking me softly, and yet there was something ravenous about his obsession with my neck. I forgot everything—my sister, my parents' absence on my big day, everything, even my name. 

“Oh! Brandon!” He was the only one who currently existed in my world. 

“I want you to say it,” he whispered. I could feel us moving but I was too detached from my surroundings to care. 

“Say it,” I moaned. 

“Tell me that you want me too,” he said softly. I could detect a slight tease in his voice but I did not care. 

“I want…” I felt myself being dropped softly on the couch, the fabric was cool against my skin. I made an effort to look down and I was naked already. 

How had he done that? 

“Say it, Salma. Tell me you want me,” he whispered, planting wet kisses on my chest. 

“I want…” I gasped as Brandon took my left breast whole in his hot mouth. I forgot to breathe as shocks of pleasurable waves shook my core. 

His tongue made circular motions around my nipple, causing my breathing to become uneven. He had stuck his fingers into my vagina, leaving me breathless at this point. 

“Breath, Mon Cherie,” he whispered, briefly forsaking my breast. I cried—a groan of frustration at the pause but he soon picked up the pace—sucking my nipples and twirling his fingers inside me—deeper, gently, faster—until I felt my entire body jerk deliciously from his expert fingers. 

I had no words to say. For the first time in my entire life, my mind was completely blank. The only thing I could remember to say was, “Oh, Brandon, Brandon!”