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“You’re heeere!” Emmy, my best friend, squealed as she flung the front door open and launched herself at me.

I squealed, clinging onto her as we spun around on the doorstep. “I’m here!”

“And you’re free!” Emmy pulled back, clutching my face in her hands. Her grin was maniacal. “How do you feel?”

“I feel fucking great,” I said on a relieved exhale, meaning it.

I’d been waiting for three years for this moment—the day I could leave my father’s house for good and live my life like a normal woman. No arranged marriages, no housewife duties, no creepy ass men lining up on the daily packing heat and making promises they’d never intend to keep. I was a free woman.

It was my 21st birthday, I’d left my father’s house after our breakfast (a requirement of our arrangement) and gone straight to an interview at WolfeTech for an entry level assistant position, and now I was here, with Emmy, about to move into my new home. All I had with me was a suitcase and my handbag.

“I bet you do!” Emmy snatched my hand and dragged me into the house. “Come on, let’s get you settled in. I have big plans for us today.”

I didn’t doubt her for one second.

Emmy was my only friend on the outside. She was statuesque—tall, long blond tresses, cherub cheeks and big green eyes. Angelic looking, but the mouth of a sailor and the grace of a newborn foal. Honestly, she was so clumsy I’m surprised she hadn’t had a fatal accident yet.

We’d met on a night out just after I’d turned 18. I saw her arguing with her then boyfriend, and when I’d gone to check on her after he’d abandoned her, she couldn’t stop staring at my bodyguards—my brother Kelvin, and my father’s right-hand man Tony. I’d made them leave so I could make sure she was okay without being intimidated by them. After some persuasion, the men left and I managed to pull out of her that she and her boyfriend argued constantly. In her words, he’d probably be back in twenty minutes. I’d taken it upon myself to stay with her until he did, and when he didn’t, we got very drunk and Tony drove us home. I left her with my phone number in case she ever needed help, and we’d been practically inseparable ever since.

My room was the smaller of the two bedrooms at the back of the house. It had a small double bed and a wardrobe that had seen better days, something I assumed had been provided by the landlord. I needed to buy bedding, given the naked duvet and pillows folded neatly in the centre of the bed. I’d also need to buy a dressing table—there was just enough space in the corner for a small one and a stool.

“How did your interview go, Rae?” Emmy asked as I unzipped my suitcase, and plopped down on my bed, long legs stretched out in front of her.

I started hanging my clothes on the few hangers in the wardrobe. “Good, I think. It wasn’t with the guy I’ll be working for, it was with the HR manager and COO.”

“What were they like?”

“Nice enough. I’m sure they thought me a bit naive but that’s something I can only prove wrong if they give me the job.”

“Well, I’ve got all my fingers crossed for you. When would you start?”

I blew out a breath. “Monday. They said the person I’m replacing left without notice so they’re eager to get someone in.”

“Maybe that’ll work in your favour. Although if someone left without notice, the guy could be a dick.”

No more of a dick than the men in my family, I thought. “Well if he is, I’ll handle it. I’m a big girl. And I won’t be bullied by a small-minded man.”

“Aye, that’s my girl!” Emmy grinned. “Now, get your shit unpacked and then pull an outfit together. We’re going for dinner in the West End before going out out.”

I shivered with excitement. “Emmy, baby, I am at your mercy.”