Danger.

“More,” I mumbled, sliding the empty shot glass across the counter as I waited for the bartender to pour another round of vodka.

The glass slipped from my fingers and tipped onto its side with a soft clink.

I blinked at it for a second before letting out a small, crooked laugh.

The room tilted ever so slightly.

Or maybe I had.

I wasn’t sure anymore.

I rolled my head once, slowly, trying to steady the strange heaviness behind my eyes, but it only made the colored lights smear together into bright streaks.

Not enough.

None of it was enough.

The music was loud.

People were having all kinds of fun around…I should have too.

But somehow, the emptiness inside my chest still swallowed all of it.

Beside me, Luisa swayed effortlessly to the music, as though she’d been born for nights like this.

A minute ago she’d been laughing.

Now she was watching me.

Not with amusement, but with concern.

Maybe even guilt.

I reached for the fresh shot before the bartender had fully set it down.

“Enough,” Luisa said, catching my wrist.

I frowned at her, my movements slower than I meant them to be.

“What?” I slurred with a lazy smile. “Isn’t… isn’t this what you wanted?”

I tilted my head, trying to focus on her face.

It took longer than it should have.

“You said we should come party and have fun…” I continued. “So here I am.”

I took the shot anyway, gulping it down my throat and dropping the shot glass down on the counter with so much force, it almost broke.

I turned back toward the bartender, nearly losing my balance on the stool before catching myself against the counter.

“Another,” I said, lifting one finger into the air.

The bartender hesitated.

I couldn’t tell if he was looking at me…

Or through me.

Either way, the ache in my chest hadn’t faded.

Not even a little.

I mean, one almost-kiss shouldn’t be enough to unravel me.

So why couldn’t I stop replaying it?

Why couldn’t I get him out of my head?

MR. SEBASTIAN VOSS POV.

I stood by the bathroom mirror, wiping my hair dry while I stared at my reflection in the mirror.

My mind was about drifting to the cabin again…but thankfully, my phone vibrated against the bathroom counter, bringing me back to reality.

I grabbed my phone, my breath hitching in my throat when I saw the name flash across my screen.

Maya.

I almost ignored it.

Almost…

But something made me answer.

“Hello?” I said, my heart beat rising slightly.

Then…

“Sebastian?”

Every muscle in my body locked.

“Maya?”

A soft laugh drifted through the speaker.

Not the bright laugh I was used to hearing whenever she teased Luisa.

This one sounded… heavy. Unsteady.

“I knew you’d answer.”

My grip tightened around the phone.

“Maya, where are you?”

She ignored the question.

“Why…” she murmured, dragging the word out lazily. “Why did you walk away like that?”

My jaw clenched.

“You shouldn’t be asking me that,”

She let out another small laugh.

“You were looking at me…” Her voice dropped to a whisper.”like you wanted to kiss me.”

I shut my eyes.

Damnit.

“Maya.”

“I thought…” she continued, her words slurring together, “I thought maybe I imagined it.”

My heartbeat quickened.

“Where are you?” I asked, walking out of the bathroom and heading towards my room, towards the closet.

There was no answer.

“Maya.”

I dragged a hand across my face.

“Maya!…” my voice rose with panic because I knew for sure she was still on the line. But why wasn’t she answering? Where the hell was she?

Then finally, her voice came.

Soft and Sleepy.

“You sound different.” She said teasingly.

“Have you been drinking again?”

“Hmm?”

“Answer me.”

“Maybe.”

“Oh, God,”

“I only had…” She paused again, clearly trying to count.

“…a few.”

I could practically hear her smiling.

“I think.”

My stomach sank.

“Where exactly are you?”

“The party.”

“What party?”

“The one Luisa dragged me to.”

Her words blurred together.

“So many lights…” she mumbled.

I put the phone on loud speaker, dropping the phone on the bed, and opening my closet while I quickly shuffled through my clothes.

“I don’t like…” She hiccupped softly. “I don’t like that you walked away.”

My chest tightened.

“You need to tell me where you are now.” I said, loud enough for her to hear me.

“I want…”

She stopped herself…then she laughed again.

“Never mind.”

The line crackled.

Then…Silence.

I took the phone, glancing at the blank screen.

Fuck.

I hit redial immediately.

I called once, twice…

Three times.

Each attempt ended the same way.

“The number you are trying to reach is unavailable”

I dialed Luisa’s number too. Same thing.

A cold feeling settled in my chest.

Maya was drunk, confused, and alone.

No.

I didn’t allow myself another second to think. I had to find her somehow.

MAYA’S POV.

Everything looked… crooked.

I leaned against the hallway wall for a second, pressing my palm against the cool surface as I slowly rolled my head from one shoulder to the other.

The movement only made the corridor sway harder.

“Oops,” I whispered to nobody.

The restroom door swung shut behind me.

I blinked several times, trying to force the hallway into focus.

It refused.

The lights stretched into long glowing lines.

The floor seemed much farther away than it should have been.

Where was Luisa?

I frowned, looking around for her but I couldn’t see her, i couldn’t see anything.

“I’ll…” I muttered, pointing ahead with unnecessary determination.

“I’ll find her.”

Pushing myself away from the wall, I started walking.

Well…

Walking was generous.

I drifted more than walked, one hand brushing the wall to keep myself upright whenever the floor decided to tilt beneath me.

The music from the club faded the deeper I wandered into the private hallway.

Rows of elegant black doors lined both sides.

VIP rooms.

Maybe Luisa was in one of them.

I reached for the nearest handle and the door eased open.

My eyes widened when I looked inside.

A group of people, fucking each other all at once, the ones who weren’t were doing drugs on a big table.

Heat rushed into my face.

“Oh shit!”

I slammed the door shut so quickly it rattled in its frame.

“Wrong room…”

I backed away, nearly tripping over my own heels.

Embarrassed, I turned toward the next door.

Maybe she was…

“Hey, sexy.”

A low and amusing male’s voice stopped me.

I turned slowly.

A man leaned casually against the opposite wall.

Dark tattoos disappeared beneath the sleeves of his shirt, winding up his neck and disappearing beneath his jaw.

A slow smile spread across his face as his eyes wandered over me.

“Who’re you looking for?” He nodded towards me.

I looked away without answering.

My stomach suddenly didn’t feel drunk anymore.

Just… uneasy.

I turned on my heel and started walking back the way I’d come.

I took a few step away but then, I felt a hard grip around my wrist.

And before I could react, he yanked me backward.

My balance disappeared and I stumbled into a hard chest.

I slowly looked up at him.

My breath caught.

It wasn’t his tattoos that frightened me.

It was his eyes.

They were smiling…

But nothing else about him was.

“Ignoring me isn’t very polite.” He said, a sly smirk playing at the corner his lips.