CHAPTER ONE

LUCIAN

“We’ve arrived, sir.”

Great. So we were actually doing this.

My gaze drifted to the tinted window, to the blinding lights screaming down at the entrance of the building like a warning. Eclipse’s Strip n Drink. Even‍‌ inside the car, I could hear the bass pounding from the walls. The street outside was packed and bouncers stood like soldiers, tightly checking IDs and patting down anyone who seemed like a threat.

I breathed out loud in annoyance. “Can’t we just go back?”

George turned his head. “Sir, with all due respect, Matt promised to have my head for breakfast if you don’t walk in there tonight.”

“You don’t have to drink,” he continued. “You can just sit in there for an hour and nod at whatever Matt says. Maybe even applaud once or twice. Then you can glare your way out of the building and go home.”

I gave him a slow look. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

“Not at all, sir.”

I’ve been in meetings all day and by the time I was done, I didn’t bother going home. My tie was long gone—lost somewhere between the conference room and the elevator—and my jacket lay abandoned in the backseat like it had personally offended me. Now I sat in a half-unbuttoned shirt, sleeves rolled to my elbows, tattoos exposed, hair slightly tousled. This is as far as I can go for the casual look.

“Remind me why I’m doing this again.”

“Because it’s your cousin’s bachelor party. Because you’ve bailed on the last three events you were invited to. Because your mother is one conversation away from staging a full-blown rescue mission. And because,” George said, pausing for effect, “you haven’t done anything remotely selfish in years.”

I scowled. “If someone tries to make me do body shots or dance, I’m burning the building down.”

George gave a nod. “Understood. Total annihilation if provoked.”

I reached for the door handle, then paused when I saw Matt burst out through the club’s front entrance like he was being chased by the spotlight and for a second, I thought he might break into a dance number. He high-fived the bouncers, grinning ear to ear like a walking advertisement for poor decisions.

A ridiculous sash was slung across his bare chest with ‘Groom-To-Be’ printed in bold gold letters. And as if that wasn’t enough of a spectacle, a glittery plastic crown was seated lopsided on his head.

The secondhand embarrassment was almost too much to bear, but I’m not surprised at all. Matt thrives on attention and if he isn’t the loudest voice in the room, he’d find a way to set something on fire just to fix that.

I let out an irritated sigh and straightened, inevitably shutting the door on everything else.

“I’ll be here when you’re done, sir.” George said, subtly prompting me out.

I gave a slight nod and finally stepped out of the car, the thick noise of music and laughter wrapping around me like heat.

I pushed my hands deep into my pockets with my scowl firmly in place, already regretting this. Matt spotted me.

“Lucian!” he shouted, grinning like an idiot as he ran toward me and threw an arm around my shoulder in a one-armed hug. “Man, you actually came!”

“You threatened to have my butler’s head for breakfast if I skipped,” I said flatly.

Matt scoffed, waving a dismissive hand. “First of all, try to keep up with the times coz, nobody says butler anymore.”

I stared at him impassively.

“…Okay, whatever,” he said quickly, linking his arm through mine. “The guys are all here. You’re the last.”

“I’m also the only one who doesn’t want to be here.”

He looped his arm tighter around mine and tried dragging me toward the club.

“Trust me, we’re not trying to force you into anything. If it gets too much, we leave. No questions asked.”

I gave him a dry look. “You do remember this is your bachelor party right?”

He grinned. “And I’ll have another party next week. Hell, I’ll throw three more before the wedding. But you haven’t had a night off in what? Two years?”

I didn’t respond to that. “So what’s the plan? Drag me in, make me fake it till I break, then bail?”

“Pretty much,” he said with a smirk.

I shook my head. “Thanks, Matt. Real inspiring.”

“Someone’s gotta keep you from turning into a hermit CEO. Trust me, the world doesn’t need that much gloom.” His voice dropped. “We just want to you to have some fun before you burn out.”

I stared at him for a beat. “And by ‘we’, you mean…?”

He made an exaggerated gesture of zipping his lips and throwing away the key. “I don’t kiss and tell, coz. That’s just bad manners.”

Of course. My mother.

I shook my head. “She actually masterminded an intervention at a strip club?”

Matt snorted. “Well, in her defense, this place does have decent dancers. Now come on. We’ll take it slow.”

I have no plans of staying for long so I let Matt drag me to the entrance and as we approached, the crowd cleared from our path. Some people stared silently, others whispered openly, not even trying to be discreet with fingers pointed at us.

I wasn’t used to the attention anymore. Not after three years of being recluse and out of the public’s eye, which was exactly why I avoided any spotlight when I could.

The bouncers gave us a pass without the usual checks, thanks to Matt’s connections, or maybe it was just his charm. Either way, we were in.

He steered me through the crowd on the club’s main floor with casual ease, ignoring the bar and weaving past groups of men shouting over the music. We made our way toward a far corner where a thick red door stood behind a velvet rope, guarded by a bouncer built like a truck.

We had to pass a full body metal detector before he slipped a red wristband around each of our wrists without a word and opened the door.

The change was instant.

Gone was the blaring music and drunken screeches. Here, everything was more mellow and exquisite.

I let my eyes roam slowly with detachment.

Plush velvet couches in deep burgundy curved around a sleek central stage. Thin, sheer curtains hung between sections, offering the illusion of privacy while still keeping the atmosphere open.

The air buzzed quietly with laughter and clinking glasses and low voices. Even the staff and waitresses in skimpy lace uniforms moved gracefully through the space, topping off drinks without ever interrupting conversation.

Matt jabbed me with an idiot grin. “What do you think?”

“It doesn’t look like a health violation waiting to happen.”

“High praise coming from you,” he said with a laugh. “Come on, let’s go meet the others.”

Matt walked beside me through velvet ropes and curvature walls before leading me to a private VIP Lounge that opened into a very spacious elevated booth with an unobstructed view of the performance stage.

The guys were already seated with drinks in hand and their eyes glued on the performance stage where a couple of scantily clothed performers were dancing around a chrome-pole. The room pulsed with hoots and catcalls along with dollar bills flying around the venue like confetti in celebration of the performance.

Matt threw his arms out like a game-show host. “Gentlemen, the man of the hour… correction, the man who actually matters —Lucian.”

A few heads turned.

“Yo, what’s up?” one guy said, leaning in to fist-bump me. I accepted the gesture without any warmth.

Another guy offered a handshake. “Heard about you. I’m Connor.”

I clasped his hand for a second just for the sake of civility. “Likewise.”

The moment of introduction was over as quickly as it started and the group’s attention swung right back to the stage where another woman was now upside down, legs split, the crowd going wild. One guy whistled, another tossed a stack of singles that scattered across the platform like petals.

I slid into the seat beside Matt and he passed me a glass already half-filled with amber liquid. I took it without comment, cradling it in my hand instead of drinking.

I sat there unmoving, letting the vibrating music, the sea of noise and erotic movement of bodies wash over me. Present but not part of it.

Honestly, I don’t understand how anyone found this enjoyable—spending their nights drenched in noise, in sweat, in chaos. But then again, I wasn’t exactly the target audience.

I was deep in that thought and disconnected from everything when Matt elbowed me lightly, forcing me to lift my head.

The room has quiet down to a hush and movements were stilled. Then the house lights were slowly dimmed and when a single spotlight sliced through the haze, it landed on the stage. On her.

My fingers tightened around the glass in my hand as I watched her.

She’s standing still on the stage in red leather that left very little to the imagination and a black mask hiding half her face like she has done this a hundred times. Like the room was hers even before she opens her mouth or move a muscle.

My eyes locked, just instinct at first but something held.

She didn’t look at our direction as her eyes did a quick sweep of the room.

A slow, dangerous heat suddenly pooled low in my body and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t look away from her.

I leaned back in my chair, my interest thoroughly piqued. “Who’s that?”

“Welcome to the club, dearest cousin.” Matt replied. “That is Lux, the person we’re here for.”