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Proluge

Three little words

If anyone asked what I was most afraid of, what terrified me, stole my breath, and made my life flicker before my eyes, I would say three little words

How could my perfect life plummet so far into hell?

How could my love for Brax twist so far into unfixable?

The black hts, and I sat with hands bound behind ed teeth, ready to bleed me dry in this new existence

Noise

The cargo door of the airplane opened and footsteps thudded toward us My senses were dulled, muted by the black hood; es Would I be raped? Mutilated? Would I ever see Brax again?

Male voices argued, and so a fist to my belly

Tears streamed down my face The first tears I shed, but definitely not the last

This was my new future Fate threw me to the bastards of Hades

“That one”

My sto to evict empty contents Oh, God

Three little words:

I was sold

Chapter 1

Starling

“Where are you taking led as htly crooked smile and plucked my suitcase from my hands

We crossed the threshold of the airport and nerves of excitement fluttered in my stomach

A week ago, Brax surprised rabbed him and squeezed him half to death when I pulled free two airplane tickets with the destinations blacked out by a marker

My perfect, sweet boyfriend, Brax Cliffingstone was taking me sos I sorely needed

Brax had never been able to keep a secret Hell, he was a shockingly bad liar—I caught his fibs every time when sky-blue eyes darted up and to the left, and his cute ears blushed

But, somehow, he kept quiet on the whole mysterious holiday Like any normal twenty-year-old wo his underwear drawer, the PlayStation coht’ve kept the real plane reservations But, for all , I came up empty

So, as I stood in the Melbourne airport, with a crazy happy boyfriend and nerves rioting in rin like an idiot

“Not telling The check-in clerk can be the one to ruin my surprise” He chuckled “If it were up to me, I wouldn’t tell you until we arrived at the resort” He dropped the suitcase and dragged me toward him with a sot there, so it would all be a complete surprise”

My core clenched as thoughts flared with hot i o there again, Tess You were going to block thoughts like that, remember?

Ignoring razed my flesh I shuddered, and my sequined top became insubstantial

“You could do that, you know?” I whispered, dropping my eyelids to half-mast “You could tie me up…”

Instead of pouncing and kissinghim the chance to dominate, Brax sed and looked as if I told him to slap me with a dead fish

“Tess, what the hell? That’s the third tie”

Rejection crushed, and I dropped s popped like dirty bubbles, and I let Brax shove ed The box labelled: perfect, innocent girlfriend who’d do anything for hi as it was in the dark and on my back

I wanted a new label One that said: girlfriend ill do anything to be tied, spanked, and fked all over rather than adored

Brax looked so disappointed and I hated myself I need to stop this

I reminded myself for the three-hundredth time, that the sweet, wonderful relationship I had with this man was far more important than a bit of sexy play in the bedroom

IAlmost a month and a half” I reood ole missionary, took place Brax worked overtime, my uni course demanded a lot of brainpower, and somehow life became more important than a roll beneath the sheets

He froze, looking around us at the hordes of people “Great ti at a couple that came too close “Can we talk about this later?” He ducked his head and kissed my cheek “I love you, hun Once we aren’t so busy, then we can have more alone time”

“And this holiday? Will you take irlfriend you adore?”

Brax beaht You wait”

I sst Brax and I wanted different things in the bedrooed, that I didn’t ruin e had because of it

My blood sis I didn’t have the courage to say Downright sinful things that amped my blood to lava and made me wet—it wasn’t chaste kisses

And standing in his arms, in a public place, with that sexy smirk on his mouth, and hands on my waist, I trembled with a cocktail of need This trip would be exactly e needed

He brushed his lips against ether to stop the vibrations threatening to overtakewith me? Surely, I shouldn’t be this way Maybe there was a cure—soe off my desires

Brax pulled back, seous”

My eyes dropped to his shapelyfaster What would Brax do if I pushed hiroped hi s, hands pawing, bruising h

I sed, battling those far too tehts “You’re not so bad yourself,” I joked, plucking his baby-blue t-shirt that matched his eyes so well