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Adress to die for. Heels I could use as spikes to drive through a man’s heart—or his eyes. Roman Hawthorne knew how to give a gift, and as he’d zipped the back of the dress, it was then that I realized my life would never be the same. The promise in his eyes, and the way my body reacted to every touch against my skin—every delicious touch, of which there were many—practically determined it.
To say I was nervous as shit would be an understatement. I was either dressed to attend a cotillion or to kill a man. Probably to kill. A very bad man. One who deserved to die. One who deserved to burn in hell at the earliest possible moment. And I was going to send him there. I was dressed for it, anyway. Hadn’t that been what I’d intended to do? The reason I demanded Roman to give me a gun in the first place?
Lars.Even thinking his name made me want to vomit. The fucker was gonna die for what he’d done to Moni. The problem was, I’d never actually taken anyone’s life. Was I capable? Fuck yes. Did I know how? That was a completely different story. Aim. Shoot. Not rocket science. Probably not easy, either.
As we continued down the dimly lit hallway to the basement where Roman said he was keeping Lars, my red stilettos click-clacked against the concrete. My anxiety ratcheted up a notch or ten when we came to a doorway, and I paused.
Roman caught me by the elbow. “Listen, if you can’t do this, you need to tell me now so I can get you out of here and away from the Scorpio Society. Once you pull that trigger, there’s no going back.”
Scorpio Society? I didn’t know anything about a Society. I wanted to watch the life drain out of Lars, see his eyes glaze, smell his blood. Nothing mattered besides that.
“Oh, I can do it. That’s not a problem. I’ve just never killed anyone before.” I shrugged. “And I don’t want to ruin my dress.” Not an understatement. It was like this thing had been created just for me, draped like it was sewn onto my body. “I’ve never owned anything this soft before.” I slid my hands over the sleek material. “Plus, it has pockets. Do you know how awesome that is?” Garments like this didn’t come along every day. But it wasn’t the clothes or the shoes that were the reason for the pounding of my heart, the throbbing in my pussy. It was Roman. The man beside me, the longing in his eyes, the body I couldn’t stop remembering. His? Fuck yeah, I was. From the moment our eyes met at the fight.
He chuckled and cupped my face with both hands. “Where the fuck have you been my entire life?”
“Maine?” I answered with a crooked smile. “Why?”
“Because you’re everything I’ve ever wanted in my life.” His voice was low, the kind of husky that sent little shivers skating across my skin, melted any resistance I might’ve been hanging onto. “Because I want to own you. I want to touch you. I want everything I can take from you without ever letting you go, Rylie. Because you’re hot as fuck, and now you’re mine.”
God help me. I wanted all that, too.
I didn’t agree, didn’t nod, didn’t even breathe before Roman pushed me against the wall and captured my lips in a kiss that demanded, claimed, and seared me from the inside. It was all fire and dominant and rough—the push I needed.
Too soon, he pulled away and stared into my eyes. “You’ve been tapped for the Scorpio Society. And this… This is your test. Most people take weeks or even months to build up to a moment like the one you’re about to have, to be able to pass muster. But not you. You’ve got today. And if you can’t do it, if you fail, you’re gone. It’ll be like you never existed at all.” The finality of it wasn’t a question. His tone made sure I understood that it meant my death. “It’s all or nothing, Rylie.”
I shrugged. “I’m not into sorority shit. But thanks. And for the dress.” Nowaywould I be giving that baby back. “I just need a gun and I’ll be good to go. Then you can go do whatever you were doing before I walked into your underground ring.”
“Do I look like a frat boy to you?” he asked, eyes narrowed, mouth tight and thin. “I’m a fucking Hawthorne, Rylie. An Elite. My family is one of the founding families of the Scorpio Society.” He shook his head like he couldn’t believe he had to explain what Ishould haveknown, like it was in a brochure or pamphlet handed out by the student council on campus. “This isn’t a sorority. This is power and protection. Corruption on a scale so grand and massive, you won’t be able to comprehend until you see it for yourself. All you’ve got to do is kill Lars, and you’ll have it all.”
Such pretty promises, but if all I had to do was kill Lars to get in, everyone would be doing it. There were a thousand Lars’ in the cities surrounding Stonewall. And wouldn’t it be fun to havecarte blancheto take them all out? But I’d grown up in a place where if it looked too good to be true, it was. No way was Stonewall different. “Well, whether I do it here or somewhere else, I’m killing him. So, why do I need to join your little club?”
Spearing his fingers through his hair, Roman sighed. “A club? The Scorpio Society isn’t just a littleclub. It’s everything. Senators, Congressmen, Presidents, Sheiks, Kings, Captains of industry and finance all over the world. We’re there, turning the wheels, making sure we stay in power. And by the way, your roommate’s been tapped, too. That should tell you something. Only the best of the best, Rylie. And we want you. Iwantyou.”
Well, fuck. He was right. And what was the big deal, anyway? Why was I being a pain in the ass? Money. Power. Contacts. Nothing about it sounded bad at all. And, I’d wasted precious time arguing.
“All right. I’ll do it,” I finally agreed.
Roman grabbed my hand. “Good. Now, you ready?”
Anticipation bubbled in my stomach. One giant leap for man…one dead woman beater-slash-murderer-slash-asshole for mankind. “Fuck yeah. Let’s go kill a guy.”
He chuckled. “God, you’re my kind of woman.”
“Soft, sensual, sexy?” I had my moments.
He grinned and ran his fingertip along the line of my jaw, then tilted my chin for a quick kiss. “Crazy as fuck.”
That was more like it. “Yeah, so I’ve been told.”
When we turned the corner into the basement, ice slid through my veins. Not because I was scared or nervous. No, because Lars was hanging by chains to a cinderblock wall, his wrists and ankles securely bound. I wouldn’t even have to work for this one.Some test.
The room was bare, except for a wooden butcher block table resting against the far-right wall, where an assortment of knives lay across the top. A water hose hung from the ceiling near a sizeable basin, and the floor sloped toward a large drain in the center of the room.
Lars sneered and spat at Roman’s feet. “Let me go, you fuck, and we can fight this out like men.” I stared at him, a smile on my face. Oh, the ways I wanted to end this bastard, but he kept talking. “What the fuck’s this all about?”
Roman’s nostrils flared, and he balled his hands into fists. “You can’t just kill your girlfriend and leave her on the street, motherfucker. We. Don’t. Harm. Women.”
“I didn’t fucking kill anyone.” He eyed me with a sneer so evil my skin crawled. “Oh, this is about your cunt over there? She didn’t like the way I disciplined my woman? Fuck her.” Lars nodded in my direction, and beside me, Roman growled deep from his chest.
