Chapter 19

Ariana's POV.

“Are you sure we should be doing this?” I asked as Lana’s car rumbled down the street, her hand casually hanging out the window like she owned the world.

She glanced at me, a smirk playing on her lips. “It’s not a crime to look hot, Ari. Especially not on a Friday night when half the campus is going to be at that party.”

I stayed quiet, twisting my fingers in my lap. The warm afternoon sun streamed through the windshield, casting golden light across the dashboard. We’d just finished our last class of the week, and instead of heading home, Lana had talked me into this shopping for something to wear tonight.

Something that didn’t scream "sweet step-sister Roman probably keeps locked in his shadow."

Something that screamed... me.

Or maybe the girl I wanted to be.

She pulled into a parking spot in front of a small boutique downtown. It wasn’t flashy, but the mannequins in the window were dressed in body-hugging dresses, lace, velvet, slits and silk. Dresses that said, I know you’re looking and I want you to.

My heart thudded a little louder.

We stepped inside. Bells above the door jingled as cool air brushed over our skin. The boutique smelled like expensive perfume and fresh fabric. Racks of dresses lined the walls deep reds, emerald greens, sleek blacks and glittering silvers. Every color whispered a different kind of danger.

Lana’s eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store. “Okay. I’m dressing you like the bad bitch you’ve been hiding.”

I laughed nervously, following her as she ran her fingers along a row of tight satin dresses.

“Oh my God,” she breathed, stopping suddenly. “Ari. Look.”

She pulled a hanger off the rack and held it up.

The dress was black. Deep. Midnight. It caught the light like liquid obsidian. The neckline plunged low really low and the back? Nonexistent. Thin spaghetti straps held it up like a whisper, and the fabric at the bottom flared just slightly around the knees with a teasing slit.

My mouth went dry.

I could already imagine Roman’s voice in my ear:

“You wear that out, I’ll break every pair of eyes that touches you.”

I blinked the thought away. “That’s... really bold.”

Lana raised a brow. “Exactly. Try it on.”

Inside the changing room, my heart wouldn’t calm down. The dress slid over my skin like warm oil cool, sensual, sinful. My hands shook as I adjusted the straps.

And when I stepped in front of the mirror?

I didn’t recognize myself.

The girl looking back at me wasn’t soft. She wasn’t shy. She wasn’t just someone’s step-anything.

She was fire.

I stepped out slowly, the curtain swishing behind me. Lana gasped.

“Holy shit, Ari. Roman’s gonna have a f***ing meltdown.”

I turned in front of the boutique’s tall mirror, watching the dress catch every curve, every inch of skin that was now on display. My back was bare. The slit ran all the way up my thigh. I wasn’t just wearing a dress.

I was wearing defiance.

“You look hot,” Lana said, her voice genuine now. “Like… movie star, main character, shut-down-every-guy-in-the-room hot.”

I felt the heat rise in my chest. My mouth parted.

This was wrong.

And I loved it.

“Let’s get it,” I said before I could second-guess myself.

We got matching heels mine were strappy and sleek, hers sparkled with silver studs. Lana even talked me into buying a tiny black clutch and a glittery choker. She paid for a lipstick she said Roman would lose his mind over deep, wine red, almost black.

By the time we left the boutique, the sun was lower in the sky. I clutched the little shopping bag to my chest like it held a secret. Like I had just done something that would change everything.

And maybe I had.

That night, in her dorm, Lana helped curl my hair into soft waves that cascaded down my back. She lined my eyes with dark kohl, painted my lips with that devil-red lipstick, and when I slipped the dress back on.

I couldn’t breathe.

Neither could she.

“I’m scared of you right now,” Lana said, laughing breathlessly. “That dress should come with a warning label.”

I stared at myself in the mirror. I looked dangerous. I looked… unforgettable.

Would he find out?

I didn’t text him.

I didn’t tell him where I was going.

I just left.

The party was already packed when we walked in. Music pulsed. Lights strobed. Bodies danced and swayed like the entire campus had one thing on its mind: escape.

And then came the stares.

Boys turned their heads. Girls eyed me with a mix of awe and jealousy. Whispers buzzed like static.

I felt naked. And powerful.

“Don’t hide,” Lana whispered at my side. “Own it.”

So I did.

But even through the music, the drinks, the flashing lights—I felt it.

A presence.

The kind that made the air drop ten degrees.

My phone vibrated in my clutch.

I looked down.

Roman:

Where are you?

Roman’s POV

Friday Night. The Party.

The bass hit before we even got to the porch.

heavy, pulsing, like the heartbeat of the devil himself.

Alex and I stepped out of his Charger and into a stream of students all dressed like sin and alcohol. The smell of weed, cheap perfume, and spilled vodka clung to the air like sweat.

I didn’t want to be here.

Correction I didn’t want to be anywhere but near her.

“Why the hell are we even doing this?” I muttered, pulling the hood of my black sweatshirt lower over my face.

Alex glanced at me, tattoos catching the glow of the porch light as he dragged a hand through his mess of blond curls. “Because I told you I was going, and you’re not exactly the king of self-control these days.”

I didn’t answer. I didn’t have to.

He already knew.

Alex, my best friend since freshman year. Covered in ink, cocky, built like a sin, and hot enough that girls tripped over their heels trying to talk to him. He never gave a fuck. Still didn’t.

He didn’t know about her.

No one did.

We climbed the steps. Music shook the wooden floorboards, red solo cups clinked, someone screamed-laughed in the hallway. Bodies grinding, voices shouting over the beat.

I scanned the room, every muscle in my body coiled tight until I saw her.

Ariana.

Laughing with Lana in the far corner, a drink in hand, her hair wild and falling over one bare shoulder.

And then I saw what she was wearing.

Black. Tight. Low in the front.

Lower in the back.

Slit up the thigh.

My world. Fucking. Froze.

Alex let out a low whistle. “Holy shit. Who’s the brunette in the dress that could start a riot?”

I shot him a glare sharp enough to cut steel. “Don’t even look at her.”

He blinked, raising both hands. “Damn, chill. I didn’t know she was one of the off-limits ones.”

“She’s… someone’s stepsister,” I growled, correcting myself before the truth bled out.

My feet were already moving.

She hadn’t seen me yet. Good.

I needed a second to remember how to breathe.

Ariana.

Looking like a fucking fantasy.

My hands itched to drag her out of this house and bend her over the first flat surface I could find.

Lana whispered something to her. Ariana turned.

And everything stopped.

Her eyes locked on mine.

And I swear I saw her heart slam against her ribs the same way mine did.

She didn’t smile.

Didn’t move.

Just stared.

Like she wasn’t sure if she was in trouble… or if I was.

I reached her in four strides.

“Nice dress,” I muttered, voice rougher than I intended. “You wear it for me?”

Ari swallowed. Her lips parted like she wanted to say something cocky—but no sound came out.

God, she was so fucking beautiful it hurt to look at her.

I leaned in, brushing my lips against her ear so no one else would hear. “You trying to kill me?”

She tilted her head. “Maybe I just wanted to see if you’d show up.”

“You knew I would.”

A flush painted her cheeks, but she held her chin high. “It’s just a party.”

I smiled. Sharp. Possessive.

“You’re not just anyone.”

Behind us, Lana and Alex were joking, sipping from their drinks, completely oblivious to the storm brewing inches away.

“Are you two always this intense?” Lana asked, amused. “You act like you’ve been in fifty wars together.”

Ariana laughed it off too quickly. “He’s just… Roman.”

Alex snorted. “Roman’s allergic to people. If he’s even standing next to someone, it’s basically a miracle.”

They didn’t know.

Not a clue.

And we needed to keep it that way.

For now.

I stepped back a little, forced my body to behave. Barely.

Alex slung his arm around Lana. “Shots?”

She grinned. “Race you to the kitchen.”

They vanished into the crowd.

I pulled Ariana by the wrist, pressing her back against the wall just outside the hallway. Her chest rose fast, her lips already swollen from chewing them.

“You knew I’d lose my mind seeing you in that dress,” I said, my voice a low growl.

“Good,” she whispered. “You deserve it.”

I grinned. “I’m going to remind you how dangerous that is later tonight.”

Her breath caught.

And then she kissed me.

Quick. Soft. Hidden in the shadows.

A secret.

Just like us.

But not for much longer.

Because if anyone touched her tonight If anyone even looked too long

I wouldn’t just lose my mind.

I’d burn this whole fucking party down.