Chapter one

The light hurt.

That was the first thing I noticed, how the sunlight slicing through floor-to-ceiling windows felt like knives stabbing into my skull. I squeezed my eyes shut, groaning, my mouth tasting like something had died in it.

My head throbbed with every heartbeat.

Where was I...?

I tried to move, but my body felt heavy, wrong. The sheets against my skin were too soft, Not mine. My sheets weren’t as soft as this.

I forced my eyes open again, slower this time, letting them adjust to the brutal morning light. My vision swam, doubled, then slowly focused.

Cream walls. Modern art, the pretentious kind that's just slashes of black on white canvas. A chandelier dripping with crystals that caught the light and scattered it across the ceiling like broken glass.

This wasn't my apartment.

My heart kicked once, hard, against my ribs.

I pushed myself up on my elbows, and that's when I felt it, the cool air kissing my bare shoulders, my back, my…

Oh God.

I looked down.

Naked. Completely naked.

The sheet pooled around my waist, exposing everything. My hands flew up instinctively to cover my breasts, my breath coming faster now, shallow and panicked.

No no no no no…

I yanked the sheet up to my chin, my fingers trembling so badly I could barely grip the fabric. My eyes darted around the room, taking in details too fast, too frantically.

King-sized bed. Mahogany furniture. A marble-topped nightstand with a lamp Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking... I squinted. The city skyline. High up. Really high up.

A hotel. This was a hotel room. Luxury. Five-star, maybe more.

How did I—?

My thoughts fractured, scrambled. I tried to remember. Last night. What happened last night?

The bachelorette party. Yes. My bachelorette party. We'd gone to that club, what was it called? Velvet something. Velvet Room? My bridesmaids, my friends, bottle service, music so loud.

Drinks.

There had been drinks. Cosmos, I think? Pink and sweet, I took Two of them, definitely. Maybe three.

Or... four?

I pressed my palms against my temples, trying to force the memories to surface. But there was nothing. Just fragments. Flashing lights.

And then...

Nothing.

A black hole where the rest of the night should be.

My stomach lurched. I swallowed hard against the nausea rising in my throat.

Think, Bella. Think.

I looked around again, desperate for something familiar, something that would explain how I got here. My eyes landed on the floor beside the bed.

My dress.

My red dress, the one I'd spent a lot of money on' because Rachel insisted we all had to look "absolutely killer"…crumpled on the hardwood floor like discarded tissue paper.

My breath caught.

Next to it, my panties. Black lace. The matching set I'd worn because it made me feel confident, pretty.

Now they looked obscene lying there on the floor of a strange hotel room.

My bra was draped over the arm of a chair in the corner. Shoes, where were my shoes? I spotted one heel on its side near the door. The other... I didn't see it.

Oh God. Oh God, what happened?

My chest tightened. I couldn't breathe right.

I pressed my hand against my stomach, and that's when I felt it.

Soreness.

Deep inside. A dull, persistent ache between my legs that made my whole body go cold.

No.

I knew that feeling. I'd felt it before, but only with Marcus. Only with my fiancé, after we…

Marcus.

His name hit me like a physical blow.

My fiancé. The man I was supposed to marry today

Today!!!

The wedding invitations were already sent. The venue booked. My dress hanging in my closet at home, wrapped in plastic, perfect and white and pure.

And I was here. Naked. In a stranger's hotel room. With my body aching in a way that told me…

"No," I whispered out loud, my voice cracking. "No, no, no…"

A sound made me freeze.

Breathing.

Slow. Deep. The sound of someone still asleep.

My entire body went rigid.

Someone else is here.

I turned my head, slowly, so slowly, afraid of what I'd see.

There.

On the other side of the bed.

A man.

A stranger.

He was lying on his stomach, face turned away from me, one arm stretched across the pillow where my head had been moments ago. The sheet sat low on his back, revealing broad shoulders, tan skin, the kind of build that came from regular gym sessions and money for personal trainers.

Dark hair, almost black, messy from sleep.

I couldn't see his face.

I didn't want to see his face.

My hand clamped over my mouth, trapping the scream building in my throat. My whole body shook now, violent tremors I couldn't control.

Who is he? What did I…?

The soreness between my legs answered the question I couldn't finish.

"Oh God," I breathed against my palm. "Oh God, oh God, oh God…"

I had to get out. Now. Right now.

I started to move, to slide toward the edge of the bed, but the sheets rustled too loudly in the quiet room.

The man stirred.