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  MEGA FUCKING THANKS!

  Frost- Thank you for always being my rock. Thank you for loving me even when I’m crazy. Thank you for talking me out of killing characters in every book I’ve ever written. Thank you for not hurting me when I did kill that one…. Also, your tits are awesome.

  Laren- You’re the best friend a girl could have. Thank you for listening to my constant bitching, whining, and complaining and not judging me for all the video calls when I look like a hot mess. Also, thank you for being so epic to my kids. They love their Laren. Your tits are fantastic too.

  Brandi- My husband says hi to his new BFF… I guess you’re pretty freaking amazing, too. Also, I now feel the need to comment on the gloriousness of your tits.

  Monica, Diane, Stephanie, Lisa, Melissa, Jacquie, Rose, Tara, Ashley, Brandy, Lorie, Becky, Jessica, Amanda, Ashley, and Gina and EVERYONE I forgot because names are horrible THANK YOU SO FREAKING MUCH for supporting me and believing in me. GAH I love you guys.

  All rights reserved.

  This copy is intended for the original purchaser of this book. No parts of this book may be reproduced in any form, electronic or printed without permission in writing from the author. Short excerpts for reviews are acceptable.

  Cover art by Inked Imprints

  Copyright © 2019 M. Piper

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  Chapter 1

  Sienna

  Ten years ago

  “We’re going to be late because of you.”

  I shoot a look at my older brother and shake my head. I’m glad we live together, but only because our parents told us if we room together they’d help pay half the bill, which means my portion of the rent is insanely cheap. Plus he’s not too much of a slob so it works. But he’s a nag. And doesn’t like to be late to anything.

  Ever.

  “It’s a frat party, Bryce. You can’t be late to a college party.” Clear gloss slides along my lips as I perfect my look in the mirror. “And now I’m ready.”

  “Could you stop that? I’ve already got to look after my girlfriend tonight. Now I’m going to be kicking every guys’ ass that’s there for looking at you like you’re a piece of ass.”

  I smirk. He’d flip if he knew what my plans tonight actually consisted of.

  “Thanks for the compliment, big brother.” I stand, fixing my outfit in the tiny mirror that fits in the corner of my bedroom and look over at him.

  My brother’s only a year and a half older than me but sometimes he acts more like my father than a big brother. And there’s no need for that because we have a perfectly good dad back home.

  “Let’s just go.” He’s pissed he’s driving me tonight but it works out better this way.

  And of course, being the big brother he is, it also makes sense for him to ditch me the minute the party begins. Which is fine because those plans I told him about weren’t exactly the truth. I am spending the night somewhere tonight. Just not at the friend’s house he thinks. And if he finds out what I’m actually doing he wouldn’t let me out of his sight all night.

  I head for the kitchen and grab a cup, filling it to the top with whatever beer’s in the keg. This frat always puts on good parties. Loud. Crazy. Tons of people. But that’s not really the scene I’m into. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate it, but there are other places I’d rather be spending my time.

  I spend a good half hour wandering the house, looking for the reason I’m leaving tonight. And then I hear her.

  “Oh my god!” Stella comes barreling towards me and I brace myself for impact.

  “Hey Stella.” I laugh, hugging onto her as she embraces me tight. Her perfume strong and the alcohol on her breath stronger. I met Stella a year ago when we were hanging out in an empty room at a party for a different frat. We both hold the same beliefs in these things, so we clicked. And ever since then she’s taught me the ropes of getting more out of my college experience than frat parties and keg stands.

  “You. Look. Amazing.” She eyes my outfit. “That dress is hot as fuck!”

  “Thanks.” I pull away because the perfume wafting off her is about to make me sick. “So how long until we leave?” I smirk at her and she gives me a tiny grin before looking around then pulling me into the bathroom down the hall.

  “The cab’s picking us up down the block in a half hour. Our IDs are in my wallet and Phoenix said he’d already have a table for us when we get there.” She bites her lip and squeals with excitement. My stomach turns with nerves. We don’t need fake IDs. We’re both twenty-one, but the anonymity of a new name is what I want. Tonight, I don’t want to be boring Sienna Childs.

  Stella turns and starts fixing her makeup in the mirror.

  “Can’t we just go now?” I check my phone. It’s almost ten and if we wait too long everyone there is going to be too plastered or already hooked up.

  “Patience.” She pets my head, smoothing my curls so I turn to fix them. I catch her looking at me in the mirror and raise an eyebrow at her.

  “What?”

  “You’re hot as hell, you know that right?” She fluffs the back of my hair. “I wish I didn’t like the D so much.” She smacks my ass and I laugh.

  “Shut up.” I turn and kiss her cheek quickly. “You’re insane. I love you.” I grab my clutch off the counter. “But I love the D more.”

  She cackles out a laugh and pops open the bathroom door, leading me out to the party. I haven’t seen my brother since we got here so I shoot him a text to let him know I’m heading out. I don’t expect a response but I’m covering my tracks just in case.

  Once we’re in the cab I feel like I can finally breathe.

  “Those parties are so suffocating,” I huff, shifting in the seat once we start heading towards the coast. I pull my panties off from under my tiny silver skirt and shove them in my clutch, forcing a laugh out of Stella.

  “Jesus, you’re a wreck girl.” She shakes her head. “Why even wear them if you’re not going to keep them on?”

  “Leaving the house with my brother and not wearing underwear makes me feel wrong on every level.” I shrug and smirk at her.

  “Oh right, because that’s the only wrong thing you’re doing tonight.” She laughs and pulls my ID out of her purse. “Well, Madeline Shein,” she says, handing me the fake ID, “welcome to the party.” She smiles at me and her eyes twinkle.

  This isn’t just any bar we’re going to. And it’s not something anyone else in my life knows I like to do. It’s twisted, but it’s sexy. It’s erotic yet not something you’d think a normal college girl would want to partake in. Especially someone as normal on the outside as I am.

  It’s a sex club. And for tonight I’m not Sienna…I’m Madeline.

  The cab stops in the front of the black glass building and the minute the doors open I feel the warm breeze from the ocean hit me. This place is off the beaten path but it’s worth more than every house in our city combined. On a secluded part of the South Carolina beaches, Sphere is home to the hottest scene in the dom/sub industry. Three stories high, the sleek building makes me tingle with excitement at what awaits inside. I’ve been to plenty of clubs where men and women play roles to fulfill their needs but I’ve only ever heard about this place. We’ve never even been able to find it let alone get an invite. But Stella’s dating a guy who knows someone high up so the invite was made and here we are.

  “Where do we go?” I whisper, following Stella closely. She’s walking with a confidence I don’t think I could find right now if I tried. While this building and the neon lights and thumping music is exuding everything I wanted tonight, it’s more intimidating than I could have ever imagined.

  “Ladies,” we hear a man’s voice come from our right and glance over. He’s standing at a door wearing all black with an earpiece in his ear. “Miss Madeline and Miss Alexandra?” I glance at Stella…er…Alexandra…and then back at the man.

  “That’s us.” I smirk. I find a little more confidence with every step and when he closes the door behind us my skin prickles with anticipation.

  “Purses and other important belongings stay in our lock boxes.” He holds his hand out expectantly and I follow Stella’s suit of immediately dropping my belongings into a stranger’s hands. Probably not the smartest move but I trust this place if Stella does. I keep my phone, just in case, and watch as Stella does the same. The kind man smiles at us. “I’m Ziah, if there’s anything you need for the evening ask for me by name. Take these cards, they’ll be your tab for the night. You’ll settle up before leaving. The viewing room is just past the double doors,” he motions towards a set of dark purple double doors, “and past those are the private rooms. Upstairs is off limits to you two tonight. As our guests tonight you may partake in as much or as little as you wish.” He nods to the doors and Stella takes my hand, biting her lip.

  “Ready?” she whispers.

  “As I’ll ever be.”

  When we pass through the first set of double doors we’re hit with the bass of the music, the lights, the darkness, and the bodies. So many bodies. Grinding. Fucking. Moaning.

  “Holy shit,” I say to her, though she probably can’t hear me. No one could.

  It’s loud as hell and all my senses are on fire, knowing this is what I need tonight. Not a frat party with drunken sex with a guy that’
ll be in my class come next week.

  But this.

  Raw and unattached sex.

  I hold tight to her hand until we hit a table in the back corner of the room, as far away from the grinding bodies as we can get yet still somehow be right in the middle of it. She shrieks and drops my hand then jumps in the arms of her boyfriend before they fall back down to the booth.

  “Hey,” he says over the music. His voice booms and demands attention and I see Stella smile at him like he’s her world. I’ve never wanted that. I’m happy she has him, and I’m glad their tastes match, but it’s not for me.

  “Hi.” I tuck my hair behind my ear and let them reacquaint themselves with each other while I scan the room. I’ve never done something this hardcore but it didn’t take much to talk me into being here tonight.

  I’m always up for an adventure.

  There isn’t much ability for small talk here, and getting to know more about Phoenix is out of the question, so I tell Stella I’m taking a walk to give them their space and head for the bar.

  “Gin and tonic, please,” I say loudly to the bartender who nods at my request and gets to work. I lean against the bar and stare down at the wood grain, wanting to feel bold enough to walk out to the floor and find someone and hoping that this drink kicks in fast so I can do just that.

  “Basic,” a low voice says next to me. I glance over and am rooted in my spot. Glorious. Sexy. Dark. Dangerous. Pulling my eyes away isn’t easy but studying his face for much longer would just make things awkward.

  “It’s not nice to judge a lady’s drink choice.” I smile at the bartender before handing him the card that Ziah gave us to pay.

  “I’ve got this one,” the voice says again so I turn to really look at him. It might have been the best decision I’ve made all night. This guy isn’t just hot. He’s something unexplainable. His eyes are a piercing blue. Bright. But his dark hair and beard make him look rougher around the edges than his eyes want to let on. He’s hiding a lot as he watches me study him. “Trig,” he finally says and my eyebrows scrunch in confusion. “My name,” he says with slight amusement.

  “Oh,” I giggle then stop to clear my throat. “Sie…” I stop and shake my head. “Madeline.” My hand juts out to shake his and he looks down at it before standing from the stool he was on and towering over me.

  “We can do fake names all night. Or we can go have fun with the short time we both have.” He nods towards the second set of doors and I panic.

  Do I go with him? Who the hell is this guy? I look at the bartender with panic in my eyes. Part of me thinks this could be a fantastic idea, but the rational side of me is screaming all the warnings my mom recited to me every time I left the house growing up.

  “He’s a safe one,” the bartender says, smiling gently at me. “Many of them aren’t,” he whispers, then swipes his cloth over the bar and walks away. I turn back to Trig, the man with the brilliantly beautiful eyes, and narrow mine at him.

  “You have five minutes to convince me this isn’t a terrible idea.” I take a drink of my free beverage and glance over at our table. Stella’s gone with Phoenix and while I should make sure they’re okay, I have a feeling they’ll be just fine all night. I don’t want to spend the night here alone. I came for a reason. But I’m not going to be that easy.

  Five minutes will tell me if this guy’s a good choice or not.

  “I can do five minutes.” There’s amusement in his tone and his brilliant eyes sparkle in the lights flashing behind me. “But then you’re mine.”

  I bite my lip and squeeze my thighs together.

  “I might actually like the sound of that.” I grin and he growls but I don’t budge.

  He looks out at the crowd and falls silent. I check my phone after three minutes and see a message from Stella. Her and Phoenix are out for the night and I’m officially on my own. Great. She ditched me already and I’m seriously thinking that going to the private rooms with mister moody over here is a good idea.

  Something’s wrong with me. I came here for fun. He looks like danger.

  And I like it.

  “You’re not doing a good job of convincing me you’re a good choice.” I take another drink and realize the alcohol is hitting me harder than usual.

  “I could pick any girl in this room tonight.” He looks at me finally and my knees go weak at just the look in his eyes. Jesus Christ, is that his natural eye color? “I chose you. Madeline.” He says my fake name with a sarcastic tone. “So take me or leave me. But if you leave me, you’ll be leaving the best time you’ll ever have.” He stands and pulls a bill out of his wallet, laying it on the bar. “I have two minutes.” He glances at the bartender. “Another round for the lady, please.” He dips his head and his breath is hot on my ear, making my skin tingle. “You came here for a good time, didn’t you?”

  “I did.” I tuck my hair behind my ear, almost leaning closer to him, when he pulls away and grins at me.

  “Good.” He knocks on the bar and glances at his watch, nodding. “One minute.” He looks around. “You come here with anyone?”

  “Yes, but she already left.” I clear the nerves from my throat. “How old are you?”

  “Old enough.” He winks and smirks. “Anything else you feel like you need to know?”

  I blink at him. Does it matter? I didn’t come here for a connection. I came here to be taken care of.

  And I think he’ll take care of me.

  “Didn’t think so.” He knocks on the bar before stepping away and into the crowd.

  “I’d follow him if I were you.” The bartender says. I turn and glare at him and he smiles with a laugh on his lips. “Seriously, girl. Go get him. You look like you could use some fun.”

  I turn and see Trig almost disappear into the crowd, so I grip my drink and push forward, catching up to him just before he walks through the doors. My hand goes to his arm and he spins like he’s offended I put my hands on him.

  “Thanks for the drinks,” I say quickly, holding it up. His eyes darken as he stares into mine and he takes the glass out of my hand and sets it on the tray of a waiter passing by. Without words, his hand wraps around mine and heat tingles through my body at his touch. I’m stunned by his actions, never having been around someone as intense as he is, and yet when he steps towards the doors my feet follow.

  “What’s your safe word?” He looks back at me, pausing with his hand on the door ready to push through them.

  “Uh…” I stammer because I didn’t think it would actually get this far tonight. Maybe some fun on the dance floor. A quickie in the bathroom. But it seems I was just chosen by a Dom who has no need for small talk and it’s doing things between my legs that make me thankful I’m not wearing panties right now. “I don’t have one.”

  He glares at me like I’m annoying him, his jaw clenching tight as he regards the random girl he just picked up. My heart speeds up, wondering if my lack of a safe word will be his breaking point. He didn’t like me back talking at the bar. He doesn’t like me touching him. And now I don’t have a safe word. I guess if there’s a time to drop a girl it’s right now.

  “Then you’ll use mine. Snowflake. Agreed?” His breath is hot on my ear when he leans in and chills run through me, sending a needy ache straight between my legs.

  I nod, not wanting to know why that’s his chosen safe word. It doesn’t matter. I know he wouldn’t tell me anyway. Putting my trust in this stranger’s hands should be alarming and worrisome, but it feels right. The minute my eyes hit his, everything felt like it was meant to happen, so I’m not fighting it. I’ve always been a huge believer in things happening for a reason. I’m not sure what this reason is, but I know I’ll eventually find out.

  He pushes through the doors, his hand firm around mine and yet somehow his touch is gentle and reassuring. How the hell does he do this?

  “I’m guessing you’ve been here before?” I ask in a small voice as we walk down the dark hallway, lit only by deep red glowing bowls on the walls. He ignores my question but I wasn’t really expecting an answer. Trig seems like a man of few words.

  We walk, passing couples every now and then as we wind through the private area. The walls look soft, so I reach out and run my fingers along the velvet like texture, sighing as the softness brushes against my fingertips. The deeper we go into the heart of the private rooms the more my senses heighten. It darkens even more when we make it to the end and when he slides a skeleton key out of his pocket I feel like we’ve entered another time frame. Who uses skeleton keys anymore?