ANMELDENIt was terrifying to walk back into the room.It felt like everything that had just happened was written all over my face. Like the second I stepped inside, my sister would take one look at me and know. My cheeks were still burning after my first real kiss—at least the first one I actually remembered—and my ears felt just as hot, the guilt pressing in from all sides.I had just kissed Valeri’s fiancé."That took you forever," she said the moment I walked in. "Are you okay?""I’m fine. My stomach just decided to freak out out of nowhere, so I had to hide in the bathroom for a bit," I said with a nervous laugh.Not the best excuse, but definitely better than the truth.She studied me for a second, her eyes lingering, then sighed."Alright. If it gets worse, tell me. Actually, I came to say Alan and I are going to drive into the nearby village to grab some groceries. I thought we could cook dinner together, and he loved the idea. Want to come with us?"What a surprise.She was asking—but
"Why should I worry about myself when my sister’s the one in danger? You don’t have a shred of decency," I said. My voice started out steady, but dropped to a whisper as I realized exactly what kind of danger he meant—for me.His fingers slid under the hem of my T-shirt, pulling it free from my shorts. His palm brushed over my stomach, then drifted lower, settling at my lower back."What are you doing?"A slow, arrogant smile tugged at his lips as he leaned in. I turned my head at the last second, our lips barely missing. I arched back as far as I could, but the sink pressed into me, trapping me in place."I won’t hurt your sister," he murmured, his breath hot against my ear, sending a sharp shiver down my spine. "At least not before the wedding. But what are we going to do about our little secret? That’s not exactly easy to hide.""She can’t find out," I whispered. "It’s not in your best interest. The wedding would be off.""The wedding would be off?" Alan let out a quiet laugh and s
“We’re leaving. Right now, Valeri,” I said, grabbing my bag.I still couldn’t wrap my head around this insane coincidence. That man did not deserve my sister, and I was going to do everything I could to stop this wedding.Valeri raised her eyebrows but didn’t move. She watched me pace around the room, and when I grabbed her bag too, she finally spoke.“This is a weird reaction. What’s going on, Zoe?”I froze.Only then did I realize how crazy I must have looked. And what was I supposed to tell her? I definitely couldn’t admit that I’d slept with her fiancé not that long ago. And if I just told her he was a complete asshole, one of the worst men on the planet, she would never believe me. She’d want proof.And the only proof I had was something I could never say out loud.“He’s a bad person!” I blurted, more determined than ever to get my sister out of this house.That disgusting animal would put his hands all over my Valeri and take whatever he wanted, whether she wanted it or not.“Wh
"You’ve been floating around the house like you’re walking on air for the past two days," my sister said as I danced around my room to the beat of the music.I felt amazing.A double win. Kriss was furious with me, and that man was probably giving himself a migraine trying to figure out if I was really too young. Right now he was most likely driving himself crazy, wondering who I was and how to find me.Good luck with that.The heavy makeup and my usual habit of leaving my ID at home had finally worked in my favor. There was no way he’d find me, no matter how hard he tried.The only problem I still had left was figuring out how to return the money he’d paid for a night with me.But I’d deal with that later."What’s so weird about that? I’m happy, that’s all," I said, tossing my bag onto the couch.In half an hour, we were leaving to spend the weekend with Valeri’s fiancé, and I was completely ready.I’d decided not to shock Alan too badly with my usual look, so I wore less makeup than
The clear, crystalline crash rang through the air. Exactly what victory should sound like. I yanked the bottom glass free and barely jumped back in time before the entire champagne tower collapsed in a sparkling avalanche. The man ended up knee-deep in broken crystal and sticky champagne, while my former friend was buried almost to her neck. For the first few seconds, I watched them carefully. I really hoped I hadn’t actually hurt either of them. A dripping-wet Kriss climbed to her feet and stared at me like she’d just seen a ghost. The man looked at me too. With the exact same murderous expression he’d worn when I dumped a milkshake all over him. Only this time, I had absolutely no intention of apologizing. Someone in the crowd laughed. Right. Time to play innocent. I gasped dramatically, rushed over to Kriss, and grabbed her arm. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry. I have no idea how that happened. Are you okay?” Kriss looked as shocked as if it had started snowing in the middle o
AlanEvery one-night stand I'd ever had was out of my head the second I walked away and left a sleeping woman behind.But I couldn't stop thinking about that night.The flashes of it. The soft, breathless moans of that seductive blonde. It was hard to believe a body that perfect had never belonged to another man. I'd been her first, and I wouldn't have minded repeating that night one more time.Only this time, with her sober and fully aware.The problem was that finding her had turned into searching for a needle in a haystack. The security footage had gotten me nowhere. Tracking down the taxi hadn't helped. Neither had questioning witnesses."What an interesting look on your face," an infuriating voice drawled beside me. "Congratulations on the upcoming wedding, Shulgin. I hear the bride comes from a very respectable family."I looked up, disgust washing over me.Some people irritate you just by existing. Boris Uleev was one of them—my biggest business rival. We'd been at war for year







