Over the edge.
I feel myself falling.
Then I see my mother, the way her dull hair, the same as mine, seems to float in the air. She is twirling with Brody in her arms, spinning him to the point where I know when she stops, he’ll be sick, and I’ll have to clean it up.
Then I see my father, sitting at the table, looking at the bills with a bottle of whiskey in his hand and a sneer on his face.
Both sets of eyes fall to me.
Both stop.
And then…
… I wake.
Chapter Two
Chanel
Have you ever woken and thought, Is this my life? How did I get here? What put me here?
Okay, that last question I know the answer to.
Lucas Rossi.
That asshole.
Was this his plan all along?
What a fuckhead.
Squeezing my eyes shut tightly, I still see them—my parents.
“You’re awake. No need to hide it. Your breathing has changed.” I open my eyes. Malik. He’s sitting in a seat opposite of where I lie on a bed. Glancing around, I have no idea where we are, but it’s a nice room. Much more than I can afford, that’s for sure.
My head hurts, and my hands are tied together in front of me. I’m able to sit, so I scoot backward and push myself up against the headboard.
His eyes track every one of my movements.
Every last one, tracing every inch of me.
I can see the resemblance to his son now that I look at him. Lucas is better looking, though. Absolutely no doubt about that whatsoever.
But where they differ is…
… Malik gives me creepy vibes. Ones where I would go the other way if I were passing him on the sidewalk.
Where Lucas just gives straight-up fuck-off vibes. He doesn’t want your company unless he seeks it out. The natural appeal is there for Lucas. If you walked past him, you couldn’t help but glance, no matter how risky it was.
He is beautiful.
What on earth he saw in me, I will never know. But he did see something, and my hope is that he never does again. I’ve learned my lesson. I always knew to stay away from dangerous men, and calling him a dangerous man is an understatement. And yet, I willingly walked straight into his place, knowing who owned it.
I wonder…
… I will always wonder.
But wondering can be a dangerous thing.