Total pages in book: 177
Estimated words: 176345 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 882(@200wpm)___ 705(@250wpm)___ 588(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 176345 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 882(@200wpm)___ 705(@250wpm)___ 588(@300wpm)
And something about the way it sparkles, almost as if a hint of a smile forms, makes all the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
I suck in a breath.
I’m torn between sticking up a big middle finger to my brother and father and following Irina and Brooke or running like hell.
Brooke runs back to me and hooks her arm around mine. “You okay?”
“I’m fine. I just had a thought.”
“Save the thinking for class,” she muses. “C’mon, let’s go dance!” Brooke tugs me along onto the dance floor in the ballroom until there’s no way back.
KAI
When I spot that red ribbon, I know it’s her.
My little vicious kitty.
Lana Rivera, you’ve finally come to my fucking domain.
I knew she’d take the bait. Those friends of hers were so easily persuaded to come to a party of ours, and of course they’d drag her along.
A dark grin spreads as I clutch the banister and home in on her. My gaze sweeps over her red lace dress, her body fitting neatly in the fabric like hard candy waiting to be unwrapped and sucked whole. I can’t fucking wait to sink my teeth into her sweetness.
Her eyes finally find mine from down below, and fuck me, the fear slowly settling in her eyes is nothing short of pure magic.
Yes, little kitty … I know all your dirty little secrets.
But do you even know it’s me?
Do you realize all the things you’ve unchained in me?
Her friend suddenly comes running toward her, breaking the spell, but I don’t mind. I can easily tell her apart in a crowd of a thousand people.
My tongue trails along my teeth, wishing she could look into my mind and see all the ways I’m going to make her scream.
She’s dragged into the ballroom by her friend, but not before a final glance, emboldening the predator lurking within.
I knew it when I first saw her that I’d found the one thing I was looking for—a challenge. Something to conquer. Something to tame.
My fists tighten around the banister.
Ever since I lost my eye, I’ve been struggling to fit in, constantly confronted with my disfigurement and its effect on my peers. I can’t go anywhere without people looking at me, and it makes me want to hole up in this mansion until the end of time.
But these masks … they even the playground.
They allow me to live the life I remember I used to have.
And I crave it so badly that it feels like I’m starving, hungering for a simple taste, a touch of a girl I’m not supposed to have. A girl I’m not supposed to take.
“What are you cosplaying at? The Phantom of the Opera?”
I sigh out loud at the snort that follows. “Thanks for your amazing compliment, Milo.”
“Well, what is this fit even?” He grabs his suit and tugs at the fabric like he wants to tear it off and strut around butt naked, and honestly, it wouldn’t surprise me if he did. If not now, then at least by the end of the night.
“I feel like an owl in a suit, hoot hoot!” He does a weird little dance, sticking his fingers above his head like he’s trying to summon owls from outer space. “Look at this fucking mask. It’s ridiculous.”
“I think they look nice,” I say, crossing my arms as I lean against the thick wooden beam supporting the banisters. “Besides, we’re not called the Phantoms for nothing.”
“True,” he responds, placing his hand on my shoulder. “But that’s not what you made them mandatory for, is it?”
I frown as my heart rate picks up. Has he found out the truth? Or is he just playing me to pry information from my head?
“Relax,” he muses. “I know you don’t like it when people see your face. So you made everyone hide. Big deal.”
I breathe a sigh of relief. “Yeah. It definitely helps.”
“Then why are you still up here?” He grins. “Go and have fun, enjoy your party. Mingle. Dance. Get some donations. Empty some pockets. Get drunk.” I shake my cup, which his eyes follow, and he leans in to smell. “That ain’t liquor.”
“Coke mix,” I reply.
“Mixed with what? Apple juice?”
He snorts, so I shove his face into the cup and force it down his throat.
“There. Now you know.”
He coughs and heaves, throwing the cup aside as he licks the droplets from his chin. “Fuck. That actually tasted good. Strawberry?”
“Told you,” I retort, walking off with my hands tucked in my pockets. “Black cherry vodka and grenadine, if you must know.”
“Wait, you’re just gonna leave me with a drenched face?” he asks. “Who’s gonna clean it up?”
“You can beg Nathan,” I muse, winking at him. “I know he likes it when you do.”
He rolls his eyes, but I make my way downstairs, determined to find the girl I’ve set my target on. She’s gotta be in the ballroom, dancing away the night with her friends, having the time of her life as though nothing could go wrong. But I know she saw the pure and utter chaos waiting to swallow her whole in those few seconds our eyes connected.