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If she allowed this relationship to progress, then it would be far ht before

She felt a jolt of response at the thought of being the lover of two men It had only been a distant curiosity for so e that it would happen if this continued suddenly had her wondering what it would mean to her own sexuality, and to the e her now

Over the years Marty had e of the club and the men she kneere a part of it

Men alked a certain dark edge, who found thrills in various forh-adrenaline lifestyles Whether they were CEOs, leaders of countries, or agents of one of the world’s alphabet agencies, they all shared a coer that they carried like an invisible shield

The ring of the cell phone on the seat beside her had her heart racing again Picking it up, she glanced at the nue, and flipped the phone open to answer it "Leaveshe sounded more determined than she truly was

"You picked the perfect tih the line "Khalid was on his way to your aparte"

"That’s what I pretty ured," she inforht about that before you shared his bed last night" Shayne’s tone beca on, Marty? You’re not so from him?"

Because she didn’t knohat to say, what to do Because she wanted to dream of happily ever afters and she was terribly afraid those couldn’t exist in Khalid’s ar the innocence she had saved for hiive her half truths What made her think he would ever do more than fuck her?

She should have considered this; she should have thought of it But she would have sworn he felt more for her than sihly "I’ll call hirunted at that "Does Khalid see, sweetheart? I think you know better"

Yes, she knew better And she had a feeling Khalid would reinforce that impression

"I didn’t ask for your opinion," she muttered

"I volunteered it," he stated, his voice like dark silk "If I were you, I’d return to the estate"

She laughed at the order "Go to hell Look, I’ to Khalid soon if you’re not still at the estate Tell his I have to sort out, and I can’t do that in his bed"

"You hed into the line as she made her turn and took the road to her parents’ hoer have a choice is when you’ll be burying s to do that don’t include you"

"For the

"Good-bye, Shayne" Flipping the phone closed, she cut hi as it lay in the passenger seat

Noto be da to allow Shayne or Khalid to do so

She could see this situation deteriorating rapidly, and she kneas her own fault She shouldn’t have run She should have faced this; she should have faced Khalid and deht in his study was not acceptable loverlike behavior as far as she was concerned

But perhaps it wasn’t just Khalid’s fault Froun to ease, Marty had known she had entered a realm of sensation and emotions that she wasn’t prepared for

She had been suddenly terrified of a broken heart In the asm she had sensed that she had already allowed herself to cross a line She had invested muchto a stop at the intersection, she waited for the car in the opposite lane to proceed first, her ure out how to handle her personal life

She was distracted, and she knew better than to allow herself to do that Khalid and Shayne had her off balance, but not so off balance that she didn’t see the black car as it raced from its parked position farther up the street or the barrel of the rifle as it was shoved out the back

Bullets tore into the front of her vehicle as Marty jerked the wheel to the right, sto as theshattered A screaas harder

Another blast blew out the back , and a second later she heard the screah in shock The vehicle sla her forward into the steering wheel For a moment the world seemed to tilt on a crazy axis She could hear sirens in the distance Her cell phone was ringing again, that crazy "Who Can It Be Now" ringtone echoing in her head as she fought to get her bearings

She struggled to reach the phone on the passenger seat as she lay across the console, the world still tilting around her

"Hello?" Her voice was scratchy, weak It didn’t sound like her, even to her own ears

"Marty?" Shayne’s voice was instantly concerned "What’s wrong?"

She tried to push herself upright "I’ll have to call you back So to throw up "Bye, Shayne"

She could hear hi her name as she flipped the phone closed and took a hard, deep breath Her stogled to sit upright

She hadn’t hit her head She hadn’t been shot The car had slammed into a tree, however

"Lady, you okay?" a voice asked her from outside the broken

Marty forced her eyes open and focused on the officer