Chapter 2: The Morning After

The first thing I noticed was the deep, delicious ache between my thighs.

Then came the pounding in my head.

I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut against the blinding morning sunlight streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows. My mouth tasted like tequila and regret. I tried to move, but my body felt heavy, completely drained.

I peeled my eyes open. My vision was blurry, but the scent hit me first. Sandalwood. Cedar. Pure, expensive male.

My heart stopped.

I looked down. I was completely naked, the heavy silk sheets pooled around my waist.

Oh my God. Oh no, no, no.

The memories hit me like a freight train. The video of Julian and Vanessa. Tequila. The wrong key. Room 1808. And the man. The terrifyingly handsome, older man with the cold gray eyes who had loomed over me in the dark.

I remembered the way his rough hands had explored every inch of my body. I remembered the way he had lifted me onto the bed, his voice a dark growl as he told me he was going to make me forget my own name. And he had.

He had taken me over and over again, his mouth claiming every inch of my skin, his hands gripping my hips with a bruising, possessive strength. He had ruined me, completely and utterly, until I was screaming his name into the dark.

How do women process this? I thought, my mind spinning out of control. How do they just wake up in a stranger's bed after a one-night stand?

I was supposed to be getting married in three months. I was supposed to be a virgin on my wedding night.

And now I am here.

I looked to my left.

He was asleep next to me. His back was a landscape of lean, sculpted muscle. I saw faint, red scratches on his shoulder blades. My scratches.

I had to get out. Now.

I tried to slip out of the bed, moving with agonizing slowness. But the moment I shifted my weight, a strong arm shot out, wrapping around my waist like a steel band. He pulled me flush against his hard, warm chest.

"Where do you think you're going, little angel?"

His voice was a deep, rough rumble that vibrated straight through my core.

My breath caught in my throat. "I... I have to go."

He didn't let go. Instead, his large hand splayed flat against my stomach, his thumb tracing a slow, torturous circle on my bare skin. He buried his face in the crook of my neck, his stubble scraping against my sensitive flesh.

"You're not going anywhere yet," he murmured.

He shifted, rolling me onto my back. He hovered over me, his cold, piercing gray eyes scanning my face. He was terrifyingly beautiful. His gaze dropped to my lips, and the heat in his eyes made my stomach clench.

He leaned down, his mouth claiming mine in a slow, devastatingly erotic kiss. His hand slid down my thigh, parting my legs. I gasped against his lips. My body was already betraying me, melting into the mattress.

"I can't," I whimpered, turning my head away. "Please. This was a mistake."

He froze. The lust in his eyes was instantly banked by a cold, terrifying control. He pulled back.

"Get dressed," he commanded, his voice devoid of any warmth.

I scrambled out of the bed, grabbing my rumpled, still-damp dress from the floor. I yanked it over my head, my hands shaking so badly I could barely pull the zipper up. I didn't bother with my underwear. I just grabbed my purse.

"I... I'm sorry," I stammered.

I ran out of the room, not looking back. Once I was in the hallway, I leaned against the wall, my chest heaving. It's over. He doesn't know your name. You will never see him again.

I pulled out my phone. Fifteen missed calls from Julian. I deleted them all. I didn't want to hear his lies.

I went home, scrubbed the scent of sandalwood off my skin, and pulled on my only good business suit. My mother had called me screaming an hour ago. "You have an interview today, Seraphina! Do not mess this up! Your father's debts will ruin us if you don't get this job!"

I looked at myself in the mirror. My face was pale, my eyes were bloodshot, and I looked like a ghost. But I had no choice.

I made it to the towering glass skyscraper of Black Enterprises. My stomach was in knots.

"The CEO is ready for you," the receptionist said, pointing me toward the massive mahogany doors.

I took a deep breath, fixed a fake smile on my face, and pushed the doors open.

The office was huge, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city. A man was standing by the window, his back to me. He was tall, wearing a perfectly tailored black suit that fit his broad shoulders like a glove.

"Mr. Black," I said, my voice trembling slightly. "I'm Seraphina Vance. I'm here for the interview."

The man slowly turned around.

My smile vanished. The blood drained from my face so fast the room tilted.

Piercing, cold gray eyes locked onto mine. A sharp, terrifyingly handsome jaw. The man from the hotel room.

He looked at me, and a dark, predatory smirk spread across his lips.

"Seraphina Vance," he murmured, his deep voice sending a shiver straight down my spine. "What a small world."

My purse slipped from my fingers, hitting the floor with a loud thud.

It was him.

My new boss.