Enticing the Monster (Midnight Stalkers

Book 2) Hayley Faiman

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Enticing the Monster
A MIDNIGHT STALKERS NOVEL
BOOK TWO
HAYLEY FAIMAN
HAYLEY FAIMAN BOOKS, LLC
 Contents

Also by Hayley Faiman

Stay Connected
Introduction
Playlist
The Family

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Epilogue

What’s Next
Brand New Series
About the Author
Also by Hayley Faiman
Enticing the Monster
Copyright © 2023 by Hayley Faiman
All rights reserved.
Cover Designer: Cormar Covers. Yoly Cortez
Editor: Diamond in the Rough Editing. Julia Goda.
Proofreader. Fairy Proofmother Proofing. Rosa Sharon.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information
storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual
persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Visit my website at: http://hayleyfaiman.com
Created with Vellum
Also by Hayley Faiman

Men of Baseball Series—

Pitching for Amalie
Catching Maggie
Forced Play for Libby
Sweet Spot for Victoria

Russian Bratva Series —

Owned by the Badman
Seducing the Badman
Dancing for the Badman
Living for the Badman
Tempting the Badman
Protected by the Badman
Forever my Badman
Betrothed to the Badman
Chosen by the Badman
Bought by the Badman
Collared by the Badman

Notorious Devils MC —
Rough & Rowdy
Rough & Raw
Rough & Rugged
Rough & Ruthless
Rough & Ready
Rough & Rich
Rough & Real

Cash Bar Series —

Laced with Fear
Chased with Strength
Flamed with Courage
Blended with Pain
Twisted with Chaos
Mixed with trouble

SAVAGE BEAST MC —
UnScrew Me
UnBreak Me
UnChain Me
UnLeash Me
UnTouch Me
UnHinge Me
UnWreck Me
UnCage Me

Unfit Hero Series —

 CONVICT
HERO
FRAUD
KILLER
COWBOY

Zanetti Famiglia Series —

Becoming the Boss
Becoming his Mistress
Becoming his Possession
Becoming the Street Boss
Becoming the Hitman
Becoming his Wife
Becoming her Salvation

Prophecy Sisters Series —

Bride of the Traitor
Bride of the Sea
Bride of the Frontier
Bride of the Emperor

Astor Family Series —

Hypocritically Yours
Egotistically Yours
Matrimonially Yours
Occasionally Yours

Nasty Bastards MC —
Ruin My Life
Tame My Life
Start My Life
Dance into My Life
Shake Up My Life
Repair My Life
Sweeten My Life
Wrap Up My Life

Underworld Sinners—
Stolen by the Sinner
Bound to the Sinner
Caught by the Sinner
F*cked by the Sinner
Stripped by the Sinner
Rejecting the Sinner
Loved by the Sinner

Devil’s Hellions MC —
Dirty Perfect Storm
Cocky Perfect Storm
Taboo Perfect Storm
Wicked Perfect Storm
 Midnight Stalkers—
Tempting the Monster
Enticing the Monster
Watching the Monster

Dark Horse MC
Filthy Alpha

Awakened Curses —
Vow to a King
Vow to a Tyrant
Vow to a Rogue

Offspring Legends—
Between Flaming Stars
Beautiful Unwanted Wildflower

Esquire Black Duet Series –

DISCOVERY
APPEAL

Forbidden Love Series —

Personal Foul
Kinetic Energy

Standalone Titles
Royally Relinquished: A Modern Day Fairy Tale
 Stay Connected

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Luxury is an enticing pleasure, a bastard mirth, which hath honey in her mouth, gall in her heart, and a sting in her tail.
— FRANCIS QUARLES
 Introduction

ENTICING THE MONSTER

A Midnight Stalker Novel

A Promise is a Promise.
The family rules me.
Born into a life that is not under my control.
I am the family.
The family is me.
A promised prize is what is owed to me.
I watch her.
I will claim her.
She will not be taken from me.
She is mine.
 Playlist

You can listen to the Enticing the Monster playlist here

Envy: Buckcherry
Wild Horses: Bishop Briggs
You Shook Me All Night Long: AC/DC
Wicked Games: The Weeknd
Rolling In The Deep: Greta Van Fleet
WITHOUT YOU: The Kid LAROI
An Honest Mistake (feat. Lizzy Land): Mating Ritual, Lizzy Land
Heathens: Twenty One Pilots
like u: Rosenfeld
Toxic: Britney Spears
The Hills: The Weeknd
Chemical: Post Malone
Dreams: Fleetwood Mac
What Was I Made For?: Billie Eilish
Meet Me At Our Spot: THE ANXIETY, WILLOW, Tyler Cole
Use Somebody: Kings of Leon
Anti-Hero: Taylor Swift
Mr. Brightside: The Killers
PLEASE: Omido, Ex Habit
Drive You Insane: Daniel Di Angelo
Does She Like it Rough?: FLAVIA
Electric Love: BØRNS
Young and Beautiful: Lana Del Rey
Wait a Minute!: WILLOW
Colors: Elvis Drew
The Family
A PROMISE IS A PROMISE
The director tilts his head to the side. His eyes find mine, and instead of looking at me the way a father does his son, in this
moment, I am very much his employee. Lifting my chin slightly, I look down my nose at him and await my fate.
“What did you think was going to happen?” he asks, his tone stern.
Instead of answering him, I continue to stare into his eyes, pressing my lips together and clenching my jaw tightly so
that I do not speak. As much as I want to say something, this is not the time.
The family is the family. You do not question, you do not say a fucking word unless asked, and this one question my
father is asking is, without a doubt, rhetorical.
“Do you want to be an executive one day?”
“I do,” I reply, jerking my chin upward.
He hums. “Do you promise to uphold our rules, Coleman? I know you took your vows, but it is clear that they can
waver.”
“A promise is a promise,” I say. “I will always do as I vow. Always.”
He hums. “Because you are the family,” he murmurs.
“And the family is me,” I state.
He stands from his chair and moves around the desk until he’s directly in front of me. Shifting to face him, I tilt my head
back to look up at him. I made my vow to the family when I was fifteen years old. I’ve been working since then, proving
myself and my dedication to the organization. Never wavering, not once.
My loyalty and life will always belong to the director, my father, and my family.
He dips his chin, his gaze never leaving mine, then he lifts his hand and wraps his fingers around the side of my throat,
squeezing gently before releasing me.
“You know what you must do, Coleman. This earns you an executive position. Everything you have ever wanted. It is in
the palm of your hand, just waiting for you to take it.”
“Then it is what I will do,” I rasp.
His lips curve up into a grin as he releases my throat and pats the middle of my back hard. “You’re a good boy,” he
murmurs. “A good boy.”
As I leave my father’s office, I wonder if this is going to ruin the family as I know it. It very well could. My cousins have
shown no anger, no remorse, no reaction at all to their father’s death. My aunt is nothing except an innocent caught in the
crosshairs, but a promise is a promise, and a job is a job that must be completed.
My cousins are being watched, but my aunt must be dealt with. She must be taken care of, and since I am taking Uncle
Dean’s now-vacated position, it is up to me to be the one to take care of her.
He had a child produced from an affair while he was married to my aunt and already had at least one of my cousins
with her. He hid that child. He even ensured that the man who married the mother of that offspring was connected to the
family as an associate.
Then he pushed for a marriage between me and that child.
My first cousin.
I was inside of my first cousin.
I still feel ill over that, completely and totally sick over it all.
That all being said, he’s gone now, the mother of that child is gone, the product of their affair and the adopted father
are as well.
All gone.
All except my aunt by marriage. And the legitimate cousins, all of whom have vowed their loyalty to the family and
cannot be exterminated unless they betray the family in some way. But my aunt only declared her loyalty to my uncle. She
knows too much. She has been betrayed and, therefore, cannot be fully trusted.
Logically, I understand it, as will my cousins, but that doesn’t mean they will emotionally be able to accept it. Because
I’m not sure I would if someone decided my mother needed to be taken care of.
My phone rings, and I wince at the sight of my own mother’s name on the display as I sink into the front seat of my car.
Sliding my thumb across the screen, I clear my throat before I greet her with my hello.
“I do not want to know,” she announces. “But just come to me when you’ve done whatever it is. I want to talk to you
and make sure you’re okay.”
That’s my mom.
As a psychologist, she always wants to ensure our mental health is at least attempted to be looked after, even if we don’t
always permit it.
“I’ll come by, but I’m fine,” I lie.
 Thankfully, she allows me to end the call, but I’m not fine. My aunt always loved all of us like we were her own. Before
we joined the family, before we took our vows, my brother, my cousins, and I were always at one another’s houses.
This means my aunt made many a Saturday morning breakfast for us, watched us at the pool and a million other things.
She is innocent in all of this, truly, but that does not mean she is immune to the repercussions of what her husband has
done. She is his wife. She is part of him until death.
This means she pays for the sins of her husband, even if she has no idea he’s done what he has.
She must answer for his betrayal.
Driving straight to her house, I stop in the driveway. None of my cousins are here, I know, because my father sent them
away for jobs. It’s just me and my aunt. I exit the car and make my way up to the front door.
I don’t even have to knock. When I lift my hand, the door opens. She’s standing in front of me, a sad smile playing on
her lips.
“I knew it would be you, Coleman. Come inside and have one last moment with me.”
And that is that.
 Chapter

One

CLAIRE

MY MOTHER TOUCHES THE SMALL OF MY BACK, THOUGH SHE DOESN ’ T SAY ANYTHING . HER TOUCH IS SHOCKINGLY GENTLE, WHICH
is typically not her way with me. She applies pressure there to push me into the office. My father has called me in to meet with
him. I’m not sure why, and I’m a bit uneasy about the whole thing.
Although I’m sure it has to do with the fact that he’s up to his eyeballs in debt, and there seems to be no way out of it. I’m
going to assume this is where he tells me that he’s selling the casino.
I’m an accounting major in college, and I’ve taken a look at his books. Things appear to be beyond bleak. There’s no way
he can keep it running at this loss. I’m not sure why he even let me see his accounts, though I have a feeling it was because he’s
beyond desperate, and judging by the way he’s holding his head in his hands, he has not found a way out of the crippling debt.
“You wanted to see me?” I ask.
Slowly, he lifts his head out of his hands, his gaze meeting mine, and lets out a heavy sigh. It isn’t just heavy. It’s exhausted.
He’s exhausted. He looks it, too. He’s got new lines on his face, and his hair isn’t as dark as it was just a few weeks ago. I
can’t believe how absolutely weathered he appears.
“Dad?” I ask.
“I made a deal with the devil,” he rasps. “It was the only way.”
“What do you mean? Deal with the devil? The only way? What are you talking about?”
His gaze flicks to my mom, then back to me, and I see the absolute regret swimming behind his eyes, but only for a moment.
Then something else flashes in his gaze that causes my breath to hitch.
I open my mouth to ask him what he’s talking about again but decide to snap my lips closed and instead just watch him.
What I see is scary. There is a tinge of excitement behind his eyes, swimming there as he attempts to hold back his smile, his
lips twitching before he speaks.
“Claire,” he whimpers, but I can tell it’s not genuine. He’s playing a part right now.
“Just tell me,” I demand, straightening my spine as I stare straight ahead at him.
I refuse to look away. Whatever he’s going to tell me, he has to say it while he looks directly into my eyes. Biting the inside
of my cheek, I ignore the metallic tang of blood while I focus on him. He’s going to tell me what it is he’s done, and he’s going
to tell me right now.
He clears his throat, his nostrils flaring, likely in anger at my annoyed and firm tone. I don’t usually speak to either of my
parents in anything other than soft, maybe even false, sugary sweetness, normally because they will both slap me if I talk back
to them. It’s the way it’s always been.
“I borrowed some money,” he murmurs. “A lot of money. A loan.”
This I knew. I saw the deposit when I was looking at the books but do recall that there were not any payments made or even
interest-only payments to whoever loaned him the money.
“You can’t pay that back,” I state matter-of-factly.
“I can’t pay it back,” he rasps.
I watch him, waiting for the other shoe to drop because I know it will. It has to. And it has to do with me. That is why I’m
here. It has to do with me, and it’s not because he needs my accounting expertise.
“Just tell me,” I exhale.
I brace myself for something, anything, but assume I won’t be able to finish my last year of college at the very least. He
won’t be able to afford it. He won’t be able to cosign for a loan for me either, so I can do it myself. But I can handle that. I can
work it out and figure out a way to get a student loan at a stupid high interest rate. Whatever it is, I will get it handled. I am
strong and resilient.
I suck in a breath and hold it as he begins to speak again. “The loan I took out, it wasn’t traditional.”
“Dad?”
He clears his throat, standing and turning his back to me as he walks over to the window. His view is of the entire Strip. He
can see all the casinos, all the lights, the people, the action. Every piece of the entire world that I know as home.
“I asked them to invest their money. The interest rate was high, but they didn’t require any tax returns or anything. It was too
easy, and I’d dealt with it before and was always able to pay it all back, so I didn’t think it would matter. But the economy isn’t
what it was, and I’m not going to be able to pay it back.”
“A loan shark?” I ask.
My mom lets out a little whimper behind me, but I can’t look at her. My focus is on my dad’s back and only my dad’s back.
It’s slumped, his shoulders are down, and his head is bowed. He is a man defeated.
“Not quite,” he rasps. “But it doesn’t matter. They want their investment back. They want my casino.”
“Or?”
This conversation is like pulling teeth. But slowly, he turns to face me, his eyes finding mine, and something I can’t read
flashes in his gaze as it holds mine. He lets out another heavy sigh before he continues. He sounds as if he’s forcing the words
out, and maybe he is.
“That wasn’t really an option, Claire. You know that. Everything we have, everything I am, is in this casino.”
“What are you trying to tell me?”
He clears his throat, lifting his hand and running his fingers through his hair before he finally tells me why he’s brought me
here. Why he looks like his life is about to be over, mixed with a tinge of something unreadable. I don’t know why I’m worried
about him, though. After he tells me, I realize it’s really got nothing to do with him and everything to do with me.
“The only stipulation they had for letting me keep the loan without having to pay it back in full. For allowing me to use that
money. To keep the casino open and hopefully turn a profit and get it back up to its former glory was… to give you to them.”
A pin could drop, and it would make a deafening sound in this moment. I stare at my father, my lips parted in awe. I’m
unsure of what to say. I could probably try to form a question. A word. But I have nothing that will come out.
“What do you mean?” I am finally able to whisper. “What do you mean?” I ask, repeating myself. I’m not quite sure what
else to say in the moment. My entire being is shocked, rocked, completely unstable.
“I asked them what I could do to keep the casino. It was either pay them back or make them an offer they couldn’t refuse.”
Shaking my head, I stare at him, unsure that he’s just said what he has. “So you decided I, a whole person, was up on the
table for grabs?” My voice is coming out barely above a whisper. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”
My mother decides that this is a good time for her to take a step forward. She moves around from behind me and stands in
front, her eyes bright and her lips turned up into a fake smile. It’s one of those smiles she plasters on when my grandma comes
over and she has to pretend not to hate her.
“They asked if we had a daughter who was a virgin. The debt would be gone if you were willing to marry one of their men.
I knew you were, and you’re not getting any younger. It’s a great deal, Claire.”
I cannot believe my mom’s words. I can’t believe she’s just said what she has to me. Not only is she announcing my
virginity to the whole world, these strangers, my father, everyone, but she’s acting like this is a good thing. Like I should be
happy about this.
“Marrying me off like this is some kind of medieval aristocracy thing in which you need me to secure your lands. What the
actual fuck?” I demand.
My mom doesn’t say anything right away. Her lips still curved up into her faux smile, but my dad spins around, taking a
step toward me. He slides his tongue along his bottom lip, inhaling a deep breath, then lets it out slowly.
He starts to speak, but it’s my mom who does. “Don’t be difficult, Claire. Don’t be a selfish little bitch. You want us to be
killed because we can’t pay these people back? We’ve given you and your siblings a life of luxury. It’s the least you can do to
pay us back for all we’ve done for you.”
I open my mouth but don’t get any words out. She lifts her hand and slices it through the air before it lands on my cheek. A
hard slap, but I’m used to that. I’ve received these slaps my entire life. Turning my head back to face her, I bite the inside of my
cheek again.
I don’t know what to say. My cheek is pulsing. She shouldn’t make any sense at all, not an ounce of it. But there is a little
something that niggles in the back of my mind. It does make a little sense, and I hate that.
I’ve taken from my parents. I’ve had everything, even the first three years of college, completely paid for. I’ve had
essentially whatever I wanted, whatever I needed. I’ve never had to work a day in my life, and I owe them.
Don’t I?
“I don’t want you to die,” I whisper as tears well in my eyes. I don’t know why I’m crying when they aren’t, but I am, and I
hate that.
“Well, that’s what will happen,” my mother barks. “Unless you want us to give them your sister.”
 My sister only just turned eighteen. She’s still in high school. My heart races inside my chest, and I hate how cruel, how
downright mean my mother is being about this. I’m used to her being a bitch, but this is a new level. Selling me, threatening to
sell my sister. Who the hell is she? She’s never been overly warm and friendly, but she’s never been this outright cruel either.
I don’t understand any of this. How is this the real world? My teeth sink into my cheek even harder. Blood fills my mouth,
and I know I’ll be regretting that in a few minutes. I’m not sure what to say, what to do.
None of this feels real.
“What is wrong with you people?” I ask.
My mother’s chin jerks up, and she peers down her nose at me. “Don’t be selfish, Claire. We all have to make sacrifices.
At least you’ll be married and protected. Nothing will happen to you.”
“Except I’m marrying some stranger who could beat me, and nobody would be the wiser. He knows he can do whatever he
wants to me, and nobody will say a word. That’s what you think is such a wonderful thing?” I hiss.
My father moves toward me, stepping between me and my mom. Hiding her from my view as his gaze finds mine. I don’t
know what I expect him to do, but it isn’t to extend his hand, wrapping his fingers around the front of my throat and squeezing.
Instantly, my reaction is to lift my hands, scratching at his wrist.
“I’m not willing to die over this shit,” he rasps.
Yeah, well. I’m not either, but not only can’t I say that I don’t even bother trying. There’s no sense in it. This is obviously
not about me, even though I’m the main one this affects. Instead, I stay silent, biting the inside of my cheek even harder and just
suffer.
“You’ll do this, and you’ll fucking smile the entire goddamn time. Don’t embarrass me, Claire. It’s done.”

COLEMAN

LAS VEGAS .
I’m not sure what the fuck I’m doing here, but I had to see her in person. Even if it was from afar. I couldn’t stay away, and
now I know I won’t be able to either. She stands in front of the club, wearing a white dress that is too tight and far too short. I
watch as she reaches down and tugs the back down a little farther over her ass.
Lifting my foot, I place it against the wall of the building, leaning there as I continue to stare at her. A man walks up to her
side, and my spine straightens until I truly take him in. It’s her brother, Bryson. It still bothers me that there is another man
standing next to her.
She’s mine.
Not his.
Nobody’s but mine.
She turns toward him, and he dips his chin, his brows snapping together and a frown playing on his lips. I wonder what
she’s telling him. He shakes his head, lifts his hand, and runs his fingers through his hair. Then, they begin to move toward the
front door of the club.
I watch as Bryson waves at the bouncer before they slip right inside. Waiting only about half a second, I push off the wall
and make my way toward the door as well. I’ve already made myself known to the bouncers, and I am not even given a second
glance as I follow their path and enter the club.
The music thrums throughout my entire body the moment I step inside the building. The lights flash around. Blue, white, and
purple colors assault my vision. I scan the room, and it doesn’t take me long to find her.
She’s a vision in bright white, standing at a small pub table, her brother beside her. They are deep in conversation when
she shakes her head, and I watch as she places her palm at the center of his chest.
He takes a step backward, lifting his hands before he throws them in the air. I watch, knowing that whatever is being said,
he’s obviously not happy about it. I wonder if it has to do with me. If it has to do with the marriage that’s been arranged
between us.
The wedding has been negotiated, signed, sealed, and will be delivered in just a few months’ time.
The brother turns and walks away from her, storming out of the club. He leaves her alone in the middle of the busy club. I
want to follow him and find out what the fuck they were fighting about, but I’m not about to leave her here alone and
vulnerable.
Moving through the club, I think about Wells and the way he danced with Parker that first night at Club Nova in Dallas. She
never saw his face, but I can’t be as smooth as Wells or even Hendrick. They’re both much cooler than I could ever be.
As I approach her, she lifts her head, her eyes finding mine, and they widen at the sight of me standing in front of her. I start
to say something, tell her who I am, but then decide against it. She takes a step backward, and without a word, she turns and
heads straight toward the front door.
I watch as she walks out of the club.
 No words are said between us, but it also feels like a whole paragraph has been spoken at the same time.
It’s better she’s left, even though I wish I could have told her who I was. That I could have at least tried to tell her I’m not a
monster. But aren’t I just that? I chose her to own. To keep for myself.
I chose her as my prize.
I should feel guilty about it, but I don’t.
Not in the fucking slightest.
I leave the club and head straight for Bryson Simon’s house. We need to have a little talk, just him and me. Then I’m going
to do the same with Claire’s parents. A little chat between future in-laws. They need to know where I stand, and as my lips
twitch into a smirk, I decide they also need to know where they stand.
 Chapter

Two

CLAIRE

“IT ’ S POOFY,” I MUTTER AS I STARE AT MY REFLECTION .

I said I didn’t give two shits about this dress, but now that I’m standing in front of the multidirectional mirror and can see
my entire reflection… I think I do care. I turn my head. My mother’s eyes are wide, and she’s wearing a smile that tells me she
loves it.
I hate it.
Maybe she just loves the fact that I hate it.
My sister presses her lips together, and I arch a brow in her direction. She shakes her head ever so slightly, just enough so
my mom doesn’t see it. Shifting my attention over to the saleswoman, I shake my head.
“I’d like something… less,” I say.
“It’s gorgeous,” my mom snaps.
I open my mouth to argue with her because it is not gorgeous. It’s expensive. My mom is trying to get the most expensive
dress to make an impression. Something she’s always done. It doesn’t matter if it’s ugly or pretty. It doesn’t matter if she likes it
or hates it. As long as it’s the most expensive thing available, she acts like she loves it.
“I have a few things in mind that would look absolutely stunning on Claire’s figure. Maybe we can try those on so she can
get a better feel?” the saleswoman murmurs.
“Fine,” my mother grunts, crossing her arms just below her chest.
I almost roll my eyes at her childish behavior but decide against it. I don’t need another slap, at least for now. Inwardly, I
roll my eyes back as far as I possibly can. I suck in a breath and let it out slowly, grabbing hold of the poofy skirt and following
behind the saleswoman.
She guides me back into the dressing room, then turns toward me, her eyes finding mine. “What do you want?” she asks,
emphasizing the word you.
“Something sleek and plain,” I reply. “Something that isn’t flashy. My mom is flashy, not me.”
“So no rhinestones?” Her gaze slides down my dress, which is encrusted with what feels like millions of rhinestones,
judging by how heavy it is.
“No rhinestones, no pearls. I don’t hate lace, but I would like something stylish.”
She nods her head, her gaze sliding down to my legs. “And your skirt style?” she asks.
“Not poofy,” I mutter.
She gives me a wink, then slips out of the room without saying another word. I take the poofy dress off, letting out a
frustrated sigh as I do. I hate the dress. I hate the whole thing. I’m sick of people asking me if I’m excited because I’m not. Who
would be excited to be a lamb being led to slaughter?
I don’t know this man.
I’ve never met this man, and I’m being forced to marry him to pay off some debt my father selfishly incurred. I’ve thought
about running away a million times, but I don’t know how to hide from my father’s casino security or my new soon-to-be-
husband and whatever type of men he has.
Shifting my attention to the mirror, I take in my reflection. I look tired, stressed, and run down. I haven’t been sleeping well.
This wedding is happening in just a few weeks, and I’m scared shitless of the hell I might be walking into.
Sucking in a breath, I turn toward the door as the saleswoman slips inside carrying three gowns. The first one she slips on
easily slides down my body, and I instantly feel at peace. This is it. I don’t even have to ask to see myself in the mirror because
I know this is my dress.
 “Look at yourself, Claire,” the saleswoman murmurs, her voice soft and almost sweet.
And if this were a real marriage to a man I loved, I would probably appreciate the emotion that is rolling off her. At this
point, it doesn’t really matter how I feel. It’s just a dress, except I want to feel everything.
Facing the mirror, I lift my gaze and study my reflection. My eyes move from top to bottom, then back up to the top again.
It’s stunning. This gown is a fit and flare, plain silk, off the shoulder with gathering and draping at the chest.
It’s beautiful, and I feel beautiful in it. Real wedding or fake, I’m not sure I care. I just want this dress. For the first time in
my entire life, I feel… gorgeous. All the negative things that have been drilled into my head by my mother, they just vanish. The
dress soaks them up, chews them, and spits them out.
My boobs look amazing. My waist appears almost impossibly small. I have an hourglass shape in this dress, and I feel
elegant. I don’t care if my mother hates it. I don’t care what anyone thinks because this is my dress, and I feel amazing in it. It
fits as though it was made just for my body, nobody else in the whole world.
Together, we walk out toward the mirrors, and I stand on the small pedestal as I look at myself from all different angles,
still loving every single one of them. My mom and sister are quiet, then I shift my attention toward their reflections.
My sister is crying, with tears streaming down her cheeks. “You look really good,” she says.
“Yeah?” I ask.
Then she wipes the tears away and narrows her gaze on me. “I’m surprised you look so good. It doesn’t even show the
pooch of your stomach. I’m jealous.”
Wrinkling my nose, I try not to show just how her words make me feel. I tell myself it’s just because she’s young and my
mother has influenced her heavily. In fact, of the four of us, Shelby is more like my mother than anyone, and Bryson is like my
father. It’s me and Andrew who are the odd ones out.
“How much is it?” my mom barks.
The sales consultant starts telling my mom all the specifics of the dress, who designed it, that it’s couture, all of that
business, then she drops the price tag. My heart slams against my ribs at the actual cost of the dress. It’s more than my car.
“This one is twenty-two thousand dollars.”
My mom’s lips curve up into a smile, and she slowly stands to her feet. Her entire demeanor has changed. Gone is her
annoyance at me or the dress. It’s no longer existent. She clears her throat, then touches the fabric at the back for just a split
second before her hand drops.
“We’ll take it. Have it altered. We need it in three weeks,” my mother announces.
The consultant’s eyes widen, and she opens her mouth, no doubt to protest the timeline, when my mother’s gaze cuts to her.
“Is that a problem?” She dares her to say it is.
“No, it’s not. I’ll send alterations right up.”
And that is that.
I now have a dress for my wedding to a stranger.

COLEMAN

I SHOULD HAVE GONE HOME and stayed there as soon as I got a look at her. My mission should have been over, but I can’t leave
this woman. Even if it’s just for a few weeks. I can’t let her out of my sight.
I’m afraid I’m becoming obsessed with her.
And I fucking like it.
Sitting outside of her brother’s apartment building, I think about turning away and going back to watching her, but after
seeing them at the club together, the way he just turned and left her there alone, I need to get a feel for this guy.
I’m guessing it won’t be positive, but I want to know for sure. Hopefully, I don’t kill him where he stands. I’ve been trying
to keep some sort of self-control, but it’s slipping. In fact, I’m not sure I ever really had it to begin with.
Closing my eyes, I think about Shiloh. Just like always, a wave of disgust washes through me at the thought of her, but then I
remember what it was like to be with her. I did like her.
She was wild and free.
She knew what she wanted, and she took it. Whether that was in business or in the bedroom. But our families fucked us on
that deal, and I don’t think she ever knew why we were coming to kill her. Not really. She just knew that her time was up.
Maybe it’s better that way. She lived and died on her terms.
And unknowing of the disgusting truth.
My first cousin.
Something that her father, my uncle, knew and allowed to happen—encouraged to happen. The sting of his betrayal still
aches inside my chest. He died for that shit, his sons watched him take his last breath, and even as he died, his only concern
was Shiloh. Not his wife of thirty-plus years, not his other children, just her.
 I didn’t understand it then, and I probably never will.
He knew that his wife would die for it, too. My innocent aunt would suffer for his betrayal, and he just fucking did it all
anyway. He could have stopped the whole thing from happening twenty years ago, yet he just let it go—he let it go.
Deciding that I can’t let this go for another minute, let alone another day, I push the driver’s door of the car open and step
out. I’m parked in the guest parking of the apartment building. I am a guest today, even if an unexpected one.
Moving through the building, I walk in as if I know exactly where I am going and that I’m expected. It works, just as it
always does. Nobody asks me a single question. I doubt they even glance twice at me, to be honest.
I step into the elevator bank, touch the button for the fourth floor, and wait for it to climb. Once the elevator car dings and
the doors open, I step out into the hallway and turn left toward Bryson Simon’s apartment, number 421.
I ball my hand into a fist and knock on the door. I know he’s home. I followed him here from the hospital where he’s been
working his residency. A few seconds later, the door opens, yet he doesn’t see me as he rubs his eyes and yawns.
I don’t wait for him to greet me or ask me who the fuck I am. Instead, I walk past him, pushing him to the side as I make my
way into his apartment, spinning around as quickly as I can. He does the same, turning to face me, the door still open, and
suddenly, he’s alert and no longer half-asleep.
“Bryson Simon?” I ask.
“Who the fuck wants to know?” he growls.
I smirk, admitting his false bravado is something laughable. I rub my chin as I take a step backward, not because he
intimidates me but because I don’t want to be close to the door.
“I don’t think I really need to say who I am, do I?” I ask. “I’m your new brother-in-law,” I say after a moment of silence.
Bryson presses his lips together, his gaze narrowing on me, and then he slams the door closed behind him and takes one
step, then two, in my direction. I don’t move. Staring at him, I tilt my head to the side, my gaze searching his.
I don’t say a single word. I watch him, waiting to see what he’s going to say to me. It’s clear to me that he has something he
wants to tell me. I find it interesting that he has anything he could be pissed at me about.
“Do you think you’re a big man?” he asks.
“A big man?”
“Yeah,” he snorts. “Do you think you’re a big man? Forcing my parents’ hand that way and taking my sister like she’s
property?”
Ah. I see his parents haven’t told him the whole truth, or maybe he is under the impression that they are always the victims.
They are not. His parents are fucking selfish and worthless piles of shit rolled into one big ball.
Chuckling, I take a step forward, shoving my hand into my pocket, my eyes never leaving his. Sinking my teeth into my
bottom lip, I scrape them across and decide to tell him the truth.
“Your parents asked for money. There was a loan, terms were agreed upon, and they could not meet those terms. Meaning
they selfishly spent all of the money and had no way to pay it back. They agreed to trade your sister for the debt owed. Nobody
is forcing anything.”
He blinks, his lips part before he clears his throat, then he shifts his attention to his feet. “But that’s not why I’m here,” I
murmur before he can respond. His head pops up, and his gaze finds mine again.
“What do you mean?” he asks.
I lean forward slightly, my gaze never leaving his. I focus on him before I speak. “You left your sister alone in that club,
turned around and walked away. What the fuck is wrong with you?”
He blinks. Once. Twice. Three times before he lets out a snort. “That’s why you’re here?” he asks. “Are you stalking her?
Why the fuck would you want to stalk her?”
I hum, unsure of how to answer exactly. Do I deny it? That would be stupid because it’s exactly what I was doing. So
instead of reacting, I only shrug a shoulder. It doesn’t fucking matter what I’m doing. She’s mine anyway.
“How about you have some respect for your sister?” I ask.
He takes a step toward me. Somehow, he thinks he can smirk at me. That he has a fucking leg to stand on. He starts to
speak, but I shake my head once. Reaching out, I wrap my hand around the front of his throat and squeeze.
“Fuck respect for her. She’s sold herself like a whore, so that’s how she should be treated.”
I jerk him forward until my nose almost touches his. “Have respect for me, too. I could kill you right this fucking second,
and nobody would know or give a fuck.”
“Wouldn’t they?” he wheezes.
Moving my face forward, I whisper against his ear before I speak. “They wouldn’t fucking blink. Nobody would. You’re
worthless if I say you’re worthless. Don’t fuck with me and don’t fuck your sister over.”
Releasing him, I take a step backward, smoothing my shirt and pants down with my hands. “We good?” I ask.
“We’re good,” he whimpers.
I pat the middle of his chest, then walk past him and out of the apartment. I don’t give a fuck what he thinks, what he does,
or anything about him. I’ll kill him if he tries any shit at all. If he ever says anything about Claire again, I couldn’t give a fuck.
 Chapter

Three

CLAIRE

S TARING AT MY REFLECTION , I TRY NOT TO CRY. MY BEDROOM IS EMPTY BEHIND ME. EVERYTHING HAS BEEN PACKED AND SENT
off to Texas. I’ve never even been to Texas before, and now I’m going to live there. I haven’t finished college, and I probably
never will. Becoming an accountant is a dream so far out of reach now that it’s pointless to even think about it any longer.
Not like I can do anything with the degree once I’m shackled to this stranger. There are still a few weeks before the
wedding, but my parents think it will be a good show of faith to send my entire life before me. So now I have a single suitcase
full of clothes and nothing else.
I definitely don’t have any pride. What’s the point of that?
I’ve got a whole fucking disaster of a life staring right back at me. Reflecting in the mirror, watching me, laughing at me.
Making a mockery and a fool of me. Sucking in a breath, I turn my back to the mirror, unable to look for even a second longer
and walk over to the window.
I can’t look at myself for another minute. I hate myself. I hate this life. I hate the world that I’m forced to be chained to. If I
thought I could run, I would. Far away.
There is a noise somewhere in the condo, but I ignore it. Living in a casino means that my parents are in and out all day,
every day, especially my mother. She doesn’t work much. She shops, she goes to the club, she goes out for a lot of drinks.
There was a time when I wanted to move out and live in the dorms. I was close, too, but then my parents talked me out of it.
I didn’t realize it was because they were broke off their asses and wouldn’t have been able to afford any of it.
Sucking in a breath, I let it out slowly as I watch the world below. The city moves beneath me, the people having no idea
that I’ve essentially been sold into a life of servitude. They don’t know, don’t care, and are partying and living their best lives.
“What happens now?” a voice whispers behind me.
Instead of turning around, I sink my teeth into the skin of my cheek as I try to think of what to say to Shelby. I’m not sure
what I can even tell her at this point. She knows about the money. She knows about the marriage. She knows enough. She knows
more than I would have ever wanted her to.
“Nothing,” I finally answer on an exhale.
Slowly, I turn around and find her gaze with my own. “Shelby,” I whisper. “There’s nothing I can do. This is my life, my
future.”
“I hate it,” she says as tears fill her eyes. Slowly, they roll down her cheeks. I can’t look away from her. She looks so sad,
as sad as I feel. “I want it to be me. It’s not fair that you’re getting all the attention and a man like him. A sexy stranger. I want
you to stay here. It’s me who should be moving to a whole other state.”
Her words should surprise me, but they don’t. All I can hear is my mother’s words coming out of her mouth with her voice.
She snorts, shaking her head from side to side.
“It’s just not fair,” she mutters.
Nodding my head once, deciding not to let her words bother me, I turn away from her and look down at the people walking
up and down the Strip again. I want to throw ice cubes on them, maybe even spit on them. I want them to be as miserable as I
am right now.
“It doesn’t matter,” I whisper. “I’ve agreed to the terms. Mom and Dad have agreed. I have signed the paperwork and
picked out the dress. I am as good as his wife. I belong to him, and hopefully, that doesn’t mean I’ve just signed my death
sentence.”
“I hate this,” Shelby exhales. “All of it.”
She hates it because she’s not getting the attention herself, the same way my mother hates it. But I know they will be as
happy as can be once they are free from debt and living their best lives again.
My mother appears in the doorway before I can respond to Shelby, though at this point, I’m not even sure what I would say.
“Are you in here feeling sorry for yourself?” she quips.
“No,” I say. “Shelby was just asking some questions.”
“Shelby doesn’t need to worry about anything. You’re saving us,” my mom says. Her lips curve up into a smile, and she
takes a step forward. “You’re saving us,” she whispers.
She’s trying to make it dramatic. I stare at her, realizing that everything she does is over the top and dramatic. She’s selfish
and self-centered. I’m not saving them. I’m allowing them to continue to live their egocentric lives.
“I’m not saving anyone,” I state. “Because it’ll just happen again.”
My mother jerks her chin, her gaze sliding down her nose and connecting with mine. “Don’t be a little bitch, Claire,” she
hisses.
I start to tell her that I’m not, but then decide against it, mainly because my mother doesn’t give half of a shit when it comes
to that stuff. She’d just slap me across the face and tell me I’m ungrateful.
I watch as she holds out her hand, and Shelby slips her palm into my mother’s waiting one. I look on as they move together
and slip out of the room. I’m left alone in silence again, my focus on the people below, and yes, I am feeling sorry for myself.
Not that I would ever admit it to my mother.
I’m not sure how long I stand at the window staring at the people walking around when I feel the hairs on the back of my
neck stand at attention. Glancing around at the buildings, I wonder if someone behind one of the glass windows that surrounds
the casino is watching me.
Laughing to myself, I shake my head a couple of times. That’s the most ridiculous notion ever. Nobody even knows I’m up
here, let alone where they would need to be in order to see me through the window.
But I can’t shake that feeling of being watched. Backing away from the glass, I continue to flick my gaze from window to
window, down at the street, up at the rooftops, hoping to catch a glimpse of anyone who could be looking at me.
There is nothing.
There is nobody.

COLEMAN

CLAIRE SENSES ME.

I know she does, but I can’t make myself known yet. Maybe not ever here in Vegas. I enjoy watching her, taking her in
without what I’m sure will be an expression of fear on her face. I’m not ready for that yet.
I can tell she’s upset, nervous, worried, and possibly disgusted at what her life has become. I can understand. The situation
isn’t ideal for her… but for me, it’s exactly what I’ve earned. And as much as I want to feel sorry for her, I also know that this
is mine. She is mine. Earned and promised.
My phone buzzes inside my pocket, and I pull it out, sliding my thumb across the screen before I lift it to my ear, my eyes
never leaving Claire. She’s still looking around, up and down, left to right. I know she still senses me. She must, and I find it
stimulating.
I’ve never been one to play games. If I like fucking a woman, I’ll stay with her until something changes. My brothers and I
are vastly different when it comes to the opposite sex. Wells always did one-night stands, usually paid for.
Hendrick liked to pick up women in clubs, but then we recently discovered that he had been paying for women who were
sex slaves. Likely getting a high from that he couldn’t get anywhere else. We are still not sure what to do with that information,
but he claims he’s quit. I hope he has. What he was doing, I know it was for a high, but it was not healthy.
My brothers have changed, not just Hendrick, but both of them—all of us. Our family dynamic is about to be completely
shaken with the addition of not only my wife but Wells’s, too. Wells has found the woman he’s going to marry. Parker, a woman
my father has practically demanded he marry, which is fine because he actually fell in love with her.
And then there’s Hendrick, who has found Parker’s best friend to solely fuck—so he claims. It’s an odd situation, and I’m
staying out of it. I’m not sure if Hendrick is going to settle with her or if they’re just having some fun. I can’t imagine Hendrick
settling with anyone anytime soon, so maybe it really is just for fun.
“We are meeting her family in a couple of days,” Wells announces. “What do you think about them?”
I don’t even have to think about my feelings on the subject. I already know they are complete fucking trash, but she’s not.
There’s something about her that’s beyond the sweet and innocent vibe she has going on. It’s different. She’s not like her
parents, not like her oldest brother. I’m not sure what the rest of them are like, but so far, Claire is unlike her entire family.
“They’re typical for Las Vegas showy casino owners,” I murmur.
“And the girl?”
“Beautiful,” I admit.
 He chuckles. “I knew that from her picture. Tell me something I don’t already know.”
I think about his words as I stare at her. She looks sad. She moves out of the room, and I decide to take a step back from
watching as well. Turning around, I face the bed of the hotel room and let out a heavy sigh.
“She doesn’t want this. We’re blackmailing her.”
Wells hums. My brother is my best friend. I’m close with Hendrick, but Wells and I are closer in age and have always been
best friends. As adults, that has not changed. Nothing has. He’s the one I turn to when I need something. He’s the one who
always has my back, too.
“Of course we are. Do you think that Parker would be marrying me if she knew the truth? Dad is making it happen because
he’s afraid she’ll go to the police if she finds out the facts. He’s strategic. He probably knew those people would never pay
back their debt, and he also knew they had two young, pretty daughters.”
Wells is likely correct. Dad would be strategic enough to do exactly that. Clearing my throat, I lift my hand and run my
fingers through my hair. I need to get her alone. I need to know that this is the right move to make.
“I’ll be home in a couple of days,” I mutter.
“See you soon. And, Coleman?” I hum, not answering him as I wait for him to continue. “You have earned this. She was
promised to you, no matter how that comes about. Make her realize that this is exactly where she’s supposed to be.”
“That what you’ve done?” I ask.
He chuckles. “Yeah, it is. Parker was always meant to be mine. Even if I didn’t think so at first. Dad pushed the marriage,
but I’m glad. She’s exactly who I was supposed to have. Call it fate or whatever.”
Ending the call, I think about telling him that it wasn’t fate—it was Dad trying to cover his ass. It was Dad being selfish as
fuck. But it doesn’t matter as long as he’s happy, and he really seems to be just that. Happier than I’ve ever seen him in our
entire lives.
Something catches my eye, and I notice that Claire is moving through the house, except she’s not just going into a different
room. She’s headed for the front door. She looks over her shoulder as if to check if anyone is watching her.
It’s late afternoon, moving into evening, and I decide I need to know exactly where she’s going. Nobody notices that she
leaves, and she closes the door behind her carefully. Much too carefully for someone who has announced her departure.
Deciding that she’s probably going somewhere that her parents possibly wouldn’t approve of— she appears to be on a
mission—I make my way down to the lobby of the casino I’m staying in and then to the street.
I don’t think she’ll get in her car. There is something different about the way she tried to get out of that condo. She charges
forward, and whatever it is, she doesn’t want anyone else to know about.
Just as I anticipated, she steps out onto the sidewalk at almost the exact same time that I do. As I follow behind her, I make
sure to keep enough distance so she won’t look back and find me stalking her.
She hitches her purse on her shoulder as she moves through the foot traffic on the Strip. People are loud, shouting, drunk,
and not paying attention to her. But that doesn’t mean she’s safe out here by herself. This is Vegas, after all.
Frowning, I continue behind her as she makes her way down the Strip and then veers off it. The sun begins to set. Frowning,
I watch her move farther and farther away from the heavily populated area and more toward the desolate streets that surround
the outskirts of the touristy parts of the Strip.
When she does stop moving, I don’t realize where she is until I follow her gaze. She’s staring at a building. It’s a two-story,
brightly painted purple building. It looks like it was an old motel at one point, and now it’s a… club.
But it’s not just any club. It’s a fucking swingers’ sex club. Normally, I would never have a problem with this. In fact, I
would be down for having a little fun, but this is the girl I’m supposed to be marrying in a couple of weeks… and she’s
supposed to be a virgin when we take our vows.
Her parents promised me that she was.
What the actual fuck?
She doesn’t walk inside immediately. Instead, she stands on the sidewalk, watching the building. I stay several feet behind
her, hidden in the shadows of the other buildings, and keep my eyes solely focused on her and around her.
Watching and waiting for anyone to even attempt to approach her. I’ll kill them. Maybe even kill her, too. I’m not sure what
I’m feeling in this moment, but I don’t like any part of it. I assume that this sensation is jealousy, but I’ve never felt it before
now.
As the seconds turn into minutes, I wonder if she’s even going to approach the front door, let alone walk inside.
Maybe she’s just testing the waters, rebelling slightly. But then she turns and looks over her shoulder, almost as if she can
sense me watching her. I sink back into the shadows a little bit more, and then, as if something has pushed her, she twists
forward, straightens her spine, and begins to move toward the door.
 Chapter

Four

CLAIRE

I CAN ’ T BELIEVE I’ M HERE. I DON ’ T KNOW WHAT POSSESSED ME TO DO THIS . NO , THAT ’ S NOT TRUE. I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT
possessed me to do this. My virginity and my forced marriage. I want control over something, and this is the exact thing he
wants so badly from me. This stranger I’m marrying.
Well, too fucking bad.
He can’t have it.
This is the last place I ever thought I would be.
A virgin in a sex club?
That’s weird, right?
I don’t even have to ask anyone that because it is.
Really weird, but I don’t care. I don’t give a shit at all, not anymore anyway. I am going to own this, control it, and for once
in my life, I’m going to do something for just myself. I know it’s going to piss a lot of people off.
Maybe my parents won’t get their loan forgiven. Maybe this man won’t want to marry me. Maybe, just maybe, I’m saving
myself from a lifetime of misery. And maybe this will be the path to a freedom that I didn’t realize I needed.
Stepping up to the door, I tilt my head back as I look up at the man guarding the door. “You single or a couple?” he asks.
He doesn’t even look down at me. He’s focused straight ahead, and I glance from side to side, being dramatic as I make it
clear that I’m here alone.
“Single,” I reply after a moment.
He grunts, making a flowing motion with his hand. “Straight ahead and to the woman behind the counter. She’ll help you.”
Dipping my chin in a single nod, I move through the door and head straight toward the counter, where there is a woman
standing behind the counter, just as he said she would be. She’s typing on the computer as I approach but stops and shifts her
attention to me, smiling a little too widely as she does.
“Are you here for an evening of pleasure or just to watch?”
I didn’t know you could just watch. I wonder if that costs less? I don’t ask because I’m not here to watch. I’m here for
pleasure… but not really pleasure. I already know it’s going to hurt like hell. I know this isn’t something fun for me. This is a
necessary evil.
Ripping a Band-Aid off.
“Pleasure?” I say, but it comes out sounding like a question.
She tilts her head to the side, her gaze searching mine. “Are you sure you want to be here?” she asks. “Maybe you should
observe first before you join in.”
“I need to be here and not just to watch.”
I try to sound confident, but I’m not sure it comes off that way. It doesn’t matter. I’m going in there, and I’m going to lose my
virginity tonight. This man is not going to take that from me. He doesn’t deserve it. I need to control something, and it’s going to
be this.
She dips her chin, maybe in understanding, likely in some kind of pity, but I don’t care. She gives me a price, takes my
information, and when I hand her the money, I’m given a colored wristband. This is real. It’s really happening. My entire body
trembles with complete and total anxiety. I don’t know if I can go through with this after all.
“This wristband color means that you are open to being approached for sex. You have ultimate consent of whether you wish
to participate with a member or not. There are private rooms for an extra fee. There are also public viewing rooms. It is
completely up to you and your partner where you’d like to engage in your activities.”
 “Thank you,” I whisper.
She gives me a smile, but her job is done. She’s taken my money, given me the wristband and the speech. Thanking her, I
turn toward the door with the neon ENTER sign above it. Reaching for the handle, I slowly turn the knob and take a step into
the room.
It’s dark. There are some purple-colored globes that give somewhat enough light so that you don’t fall flat on your face. But
I probably couldn’t make out someone’s features unless I was right in front of them.
There are shadows walking around, but I don’t know if they’re men or women. Instead of standing in the doorway, I decide
to find the bar and order myself some water. My head is tipped slightly as I watch the floor to make sure I don’t trip on
anything.
Approaching the bar, I reach out and touch the top before I lift my eyes. It’s cool, made of stainless steel. That surprises me.
My brows snap together at the sight as my fingers slide across the cool, smooth surface.
“Weird, right? But it’s easier to sanitize than wood,” a deep voice murmurs.
Lifting my head, I look up at the bartender. He’s smiling as he watches me. He’s younger, probably around my age, with a
goatee and thin wire-framed glasses.
“What can I get you to drink?” he asks.
“Water,” I whisper.
He doesn’t make a move to get the water right away. His gaze searches mine for a moment, then he grins. “Are you sure you
don’t want something stronger for your first time?”
“How did you know?” I ask.
He leans forward, placing his elbows on the bar, his eyes continuing to hold mine, and smiles as he speaks. “You look like
you’re going to throw up,” he states. “And I’ve never seen you here before. I pretty much know everyone who comes. They’re
all pretty regular.”
Pressing my lips together, I roll them a few times, then decide to get a drink. I’m not really someone who drinks much.
Usually, just a glass of wine with dinner, but I don’t like to go to clubs often, and hard liquor isn’t something I would
normally order for myself. But considering nothing about this is my norm, I decide to just go with it.
“I’ll have a shot of something,” I say. “I don’t care what.”
He chuckles, turning his back to me, and I flick my gaze down to the stainless steel bar top, my eyes taking in all the
scratches. I’m sure it’s more sanitary, but it’s really scratched. A few moments later, a shot glass slides across the bar toward
me.
I reach for it, wrap my fingers around the small glass, and lift my gaze to meet his. He’s watching me intently. My brows
snap together as something tingles down my spine, and I’m not sure, but I get a bad vibe from this.
Turning my head, I look over my shoulder to see if anyone is watching me. Maybe that’s the vibe I’m getting. But if anyone
has their eyes on me, I can’t tell by the shadows that mill around the room.
Placing the shot down on the counter, I slide my finger around the rim. The bartender watches me, his eyes searching mine,
and he almost seems as if he’s waiting with anticipation. I don’t like that at all.
Deciding to throw caution to the wind and ignore my gut, which is also something I never do, I lift the glass to my lips. I
freeze when I feel a warm hand at my back. I start to turn my head, but then I feel lips at the shell of my ear.
“Don’t drink that, sweetheart.”
“Why not?” I ask on a whisper.
A hand reaches around and slips the shot glass from my fingers. I glance down. It’s a tanned, tattooed hand. I can’t help but
stare at the black markings. Although I can’t really make them out, it doesn’t stop me from wondering what they mean.
I’m mesmerized by just his hand, my breaths coming out in short pants as I feel his heat against my back and his lips
brushing the shell of my ear.

COLEMAN

CLAIRE IS STUNNING . However, this is not the place for her. I’m not about to allow her to give herself to anyone other than me,
and I wonder what the fuck she’s even doing here. The way she walked in, it seemed as though she’d never been here before,
but how did she even know it existed?
When the bartender slipped something in her shot glass, I knew there was no other option for me but to interfere. Slipping
the glass from her hand, I place it on the bar, and instead of just setting it down, I decide to brush it across the top, flicking it so
it spills.
The bartender growls but doesn’t say a word to me, especially when I stare at him and raise an eyebrow. He fucking knows
exactly what he did, the jackass. Claire’s breath hitches as I slide my fingers up her wrist, her forearm and then gently wrap
them around her bicep.
“You shouldn’t be here,” I murmur against her ear.
Inhaling a deep breath, I smell her, and my cock instantly hardens against the zipper of my pants. She is mine. Even if she
doesn’t realize it yet, she doesn’t know it. She is mine. Bought and fucking paid for, as horrible as that sounds.
Gliding my fingers up her arm, I circle the front of her neck, holding her loosely for a moment, feeling her pulse beneath my
fingertips. Her breath hitches, and my lips curve up into a grin as I slide my mouth to the side of her throat.
“Come to a room with me,” I rasp. “You’re too beautiful to be watched by all of these creeps.”
There is a moment of silence as my hand slides down her throat, the center of her chest, and then presses against her lower
belly just above her pussy. I want to slip my hand between her legs too badly, feel her wet heat, but I don’t want this asshole to
watch, this bartender who slipped some bullshit into her drink.
She lets out a sigh, her spine straightening, and I think she’s going to say no, but then she clears her throat slightly.
“Okay,” she states.
Her word comes out on an exhale. I release her and take a step backward, walking to her other side, then turning toward the
room, my hand taking hers so she can’t see my face. At least not yet. I’m not sure why it matters. I doubt she would remember
me from the other night.
I’ve prepaid for the fifth room, which is at the end of the hall. It’s private and has a lock and no viewing area at all.
Nobody can see inside the room. It’s just us. Once we walk into the space, I lock the door behind me and release her hand.
Standing with my back against the closed and locked door, I look directly at her, watching her as she slowly turns around to
face me. She lifts her gaze, her eyes locking with mine, and I swear to fucking God my heart stops at the sight of her this close.
“Why are you here?” I ask her.
She presses her lips together, rolling them a few times before she speaks, her words coming out slowly. “You’re here, too,”
she says.
I chuckle, sinking my teeth into my bottom lip before I speak. “I am,” I agree with her. “But you don’t look like you belong.
That bartender slipped something into your drink. He was going to take advantage of you. You’re here as a woman alone. I
don’t understand it.”
She sucks in a breath and holds it for a moment, then she takes a trembling step toward me. She looks like a scared animal,
and my cock twitches at the sight of her. I’m into that whole deer-caught-in-headlight innocent thing. I don’t think I’ve ever had
anyone like that before, and it’s sexy as fuck, even refreshing. Or maybe just because it’s her. I’m not sure.
“I want to get rid of my virginity tonight.”
Her words cause me to pause, but only briefly. It was assured to me that she was indeed a virgin. However, seeing her
walk into this club, I wasn’t so sure. Now at least, I know the truth of it, and as much as I want to tell her to take her ass home,
there’s a bigger part of me that wants to take her virginity tonight.
“And you thought this would be the place?” I arch a brow.
Claire’s gaze flicks down to her feet, then slowly lifts to meet my own. “I did,” she exhales. “I didn’t want to buy a
prostitute, and I don’t know anyone who could get the job done for me. So I thought this would be a good place to get it taken
care of.”
I almost ask her why, but then I decide that I don’t give much of a fuck about that. I’m pretty sure I already know why at this
point. I have an opportunity here, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I’m going to take it. Pushing off the door, I make my way
toward her.
She’s visibly shaken, her body trembling harder with each step I take. When I’m close enough to touch her, only then do I
reach out, cupping her cheek. As I slide my thumb along her full bottom lip, I give her a smirk.
“This is a good place to take care of that, and I would consider it an honor if you let me be the one to do it for you.”
Her eyes widen. She flicks her gaze down, then brings it back up to meet mine again. I stay quiet, watching her, waiting as
patiently as possible, even though I want to wrap her in my arms, carry her to the bed, and strip her down immediately.
“You saved me from being hurt tonight, maybe even killed,” she whispers. “I appreciate that. But how do I know you’re not
a bad guy, too?”
The way she asks, I know she wants me to tell her just how fucking good I am. But I’m not. And I don’t lie. I might keep
things from her, but I will never fucking lie to her, not ever. Sliding my hand down from her cheek, I wrap my fingers around the
side of her neck.
“I am a bad guy, sweetheart. But I wouldn’t physically harm you. I’d die before I’d hurt you like that.”
Wetness fills her gaze before she blinks it away. She rises to her toes, then I feel her lips gently brush against mine. “I want
you to take me,” she exhales. “Please.”
That is all the green light I need.
 Chapter

Five

CLAIRE

AS SOON AS THE WORD PLEASE LEAVES MY LIPS , THIS MAN , WHOSE NAME I STILL DON ’ T KNOW, SLAMS HIS MOUTH AGAINST MINE
in a hard kiss. His hands reach for the hem of my skirt, and he grips it firmly, stretching it across my ass even tighter.
I can’t help but wonder if it’s going to be ripped to shreds, and even though that would mean I wouldn’t have anything to
wear home, I’m not sure I would care. It’s hot as hell.
His mouth moves down the side of my throat. He sucks on some skin, then he continues to move down to my chest, stopping
just before my cleavage. I inhale a sharp breath, holding it slightly as I wait for him to move his mouth down even more. He
doesn’t. Instead, his hands move.
One of his hands releases the back of my skirt and slips between my thighs. He groans as his fingers slide against the center
of my panties. Lifting my hands, I grip his biceps, wondering why that feels so damn good.
I can feel his lips smile against my chest, then he hooks a finger at the center of my panties and tugs them to the side before
he touches me. Skin on skin. His finger glides through my folds before finding my clit and focusing there.
My head drops backward, my belly tingling at the sensations that seem to surround me, inside and out. My hips roll,
meeting his touch over and over until he stops. I almost scream, begging him to continue because I’m climbing closer and
closer toward my release.
I’ve made myself come a few times in my life in the shower and in bed, but nothing has ever felt like this before. I feel sexy
and beautiful. I feel like I’m the center of the world. That I am desired and desirable.
It’s nothing like touching yourself in bed beneath the covers while being quiet so that nobody else in the house hears you.
His fingers gripping my skirt move down to my thigh, and he grabs me, his fingers no doubt causing bruising to my leg. I
don’t mind. In fact, I like it. He picks me up with one hand and carries me over to the bed against the wall.
There are other things in the room, pieces of furniture that I don’t quite understand. But then again, I’m not very versed in
sex. I wouldn’t understand anything here anyway. He lowers me down to my feet, his head lifting, his eyes finding mine.
He’s so handsome. I’ve never seen anyone like him up close before. He’s tanned, with olive-toned skin, dark hair, a short
beard, and dark eyes. He’s beautiful. I want to touch him just to see if he’s real.
Even though there are beautiful people all over Vegas, I’ve never been this close to someone so attractive before. I can’t
help but wonder what he’s doing here. I’m pretty sure all he has to do is snap his fingers for women to fall at his feet.
I don’t ask him, not because I think it might be rude, but because he places his hand in the center of my chest and firmly
pushes me backward. I fall, my ass landing on the bed, then my back bounces against the mattress.
Without an opportunity to even breathe, my panties are wrenched down, my legs are thrown over his shoulders, and his
mouth is right there. Between my legs. Right. There. I open my mouth to protest, placing my hands on his shoulders to push him
away… but I do neither.
Instead of pushing, my fingers grip his shoulders as my hips lift to meet his tongue, and a whimper escapes my throat. My
eyes roll to the back of my head when he slips two fingers inside of me and makes a come-hither motion with them.
I can’t control myself. My hips lift. They buck. My nails dig into his shoulders, through his shirt even harder, and then it
happens. That sensation. The overwhelming sensation that I might, just might, explode takes over. Then it happens, and I cry out
as I come.
Hard.
The stranger shifts back slightly, turning his head as he touches his lips to the inside of my now trembling thigh. In fact, my
entire body is trembling. I don’t understand why I’m feeling this way. I should be scared of this man. I should be nervous. But
I’m not.
 This almost feels… right.
He stands up straight, then begins to take his clothes off. I watch him wordlessly, mainly because no words would come out
if I even tried. I open my mouth and snap it closed as soon as his shirt slides down his arms.
He’s tattooed. Heavily. Everywhere. But what stands out to me are two in particular. One that says A Life for a Life across
his chest, and when he turns to strip his pants off, there is A Promise is a Promise scrawled across his shoulders.
I want to ask him what the hell it means, but I decide against it. I don’t know him, and after tonight, I’ll never see him again.
This is just one night that will hopefully lead to a lifetime of happiness, or at the least, a lifetime of peace, because I don’t want
to be forced into a marriage to some monster.
Instead of waiting for him to give me instructions, I decide once I’ve ogled his tattoos that it’s time for me to undress as
well. Stripping off my dress, I toss it to the floor, then kick off my shoes, sitting on the edge of the strange bed as I watch him.
He tilts his head to the side, his eyes focused on mine and nowhere else. I don’t know why, but I expect him to look
everywhere but my eyes. This man isn’t doing that, though. His gaze is focused—intently.
Then, as if he’s won some sort of internal struggle, he jerks his chin once as he moves closer toward me. “Spread,” he
demands, his voice deep, dark, raspy, and sexy as sin.
He is sin.
Every single part of him is darker than it was moments ago, and I want more.
Spreading my legs, I try to keep them from trembling, but I fail. I’m nervous and scared but beyond that… I’m excited. I
want this. I wasn’t sure when I walked into this club if I was going to go through with it, but now I can’t wait. I want him to
touch me, to kiss me. I want him inside of me right this minute.
He climbs between my legs. I can feel his length press against my center, and I want more. He doesn’t push himself inside
of me yet, though. Instead, he wraps one hand around the side of my throat and the other he places on the bed next to my ear, his
arm straight as he holds himself off my body.
“You’re sure this is what you want?” he asks.
I don’t even have to think about it, and instead of verbally answering him, I lift my hips, and at the same time, I wrap my
fingers around the back of his neck and apply pressure to bring his face closer to mine. He obliges me, my lips touching his
before I speak.
“Please,” I rasp.
It’s all he needs. Without even waiting a breath, he pushes himself inside of me. It’s not a swift thrust as I expect. He slowly
sinks himself deep into me, then stops. My body feels like it’s going to be ripped apart, and there is burning, but I don’t think
he’s actually broken my hymen.
I open my mouth to ask him, but he doesn’t let me speak. Instead, he lowers his head, his lips touch mine, and then he slips
his tongue inside of me, tasting me in one slow swirl before he lifts his head slightly, his forehead resting against mine, and
buries himself deep inside of me.
I cry out, and tears instantly fill my eyes and roll down the sides of my face when I pinch my eyes shut. My tears drip onto
the mattress. It doesn’t matter. The deed is done. Hopefully, the pain is also done now.
“Look at me,” he demands.
Opening my eyes, I look up at him. He watches me intently, and then he begins to move. The hand at my throat slips
between my legs, and he touches my clit. I gasp as he moves, his hips rolling, thrusting over and over.
His eyes focus on mine. They don’t waver or move the entire time he’s inside of me. His fingers move between my legs,
and the pain ebbs and turns into pleasure right before he stills and I feel warmth fill me. He growls, his mouth slamming against
mine, and I hold my breath for a moment.
The deed is complete.
I am no longer a virgin and no longer desirable to this stranger who wants to marry me for my hymen. I feel a sense of
sadness but mostly a sense of relief. I took control of this situation—me, nobody else.
I have the power, and I’m in control of my future.
Just. Me.

COLEMAN

I DON ’ T HOLD HER. I don’t wrap my arms around her and pull her against my body. Though I’m not really a man who would do
that anyway, with her, I want to. Dressing, I watch her for a moment out of the corner of my eye. There’s blood on the mattress
where I left her innocence. That shouldn’t make me smile, but it does.
“Do I get your name?” she asks softly.
Shifting my attention to her, I give her a smile. “Not today,” I murmur.
“I’m not sure if I should say thank you or what I should do,” she exhales.
 My lips are still twitched into a smile, and I close the distance between us. She’s standing beside the bed, dressed back in
her clothes, her eyes wide as she looks up at me. This woman is going to be my wife in just a few short weeks. I think I could
really fall for her.
She isn’t at all what I expected. She’s a little wild, daring, and defiant. I like that. She wants to control her destiny, and
although it wasn’t really the right way, it was sexy. Reaching out, I cup her cheek and slide my thumb across her bottom lip.
“You should turn away, walk out that door, and go home,” I murmur.
There is a moment of silence as we stare at one another. My cock twitches. I want to strip her and fuck her all over again.
She lifts her hand, her fingers wrapping around my wrist as she turns her head, her lips touching the center of my palm.
It’s fucking hot.
I start to say her name but then decide against it. I don’t want to give myself away yet. “Go home,” I groan.
“I’m not sure I want to,” she rasps. “Can I run away with you?”
I almost laugh at her. She has no fucking clue she’s about to be mine forever. Instead of telling her that, I take a step
backward, my hand falling from her face at the same time her fingers drop from mine.
“Go home,” I repeat.
Turning my back to her, I walk away from her. It’s the last thing I want to do, but I know I can’t stay here. If I do, I’ll want
to keep her. And we have to go through with the wedding, the contract. My parents and the family demand it.
The family is the most important part of the equation.
Instead of walking completely out of the club, I find a dark corner and watch the hallway. A few moments later, I see her
tugging her skirt down as she moves into the bar area. She pauses in the middle of the room, and I don’t take my eyes off her.
Thankfully, she doesn’t go back to the bartender or the bar but does as I told her and makes her way out of the club. After
waiting a few breaths, I turn and follow her. Nobody questions me, stops me, or even glances in my direction. Everyone is busy
doing their own thing, and I’m good with that.
Once I step outside, I watch as she sinks down into the front seat of what I assume is an Uber. It heads in the direction of
her parents’ casino, and I jog over to my car so I can follow. It doesn’t take me long to catch up, and I am able to pull behind it
as she steps out and closes the door.
Claire looks behind her, and her gaze scans the sidewalk and street. She must not see me because she doesn’t hesitate
before she ducks into the casino. Easing my car onto the street, I make my way back to my own hotel so I can watch her for the
rest of the night. I have no doubt it’s going to be wild.
 Chapter

Six

CLAIRE

S ITTING STRAIGHT UP IN BED , I SUCK IN A BREATH AND HOLD IT FOR A MOMENT , THEN LET IT OUT SLOWLY.
I may have made a mistake.
Is it regret that woke me up or something else? I know I’m not alone in the condo. I’m never truly alone. Someone from my
family is no doubt awake somewhere. It seems like someone is awake at every hour of the day or night, but that’s not it. What
woke me with a panicked feeling wasn’t just regular house noises.
Glancing around the bedroom, I try to figure out what startled me. My heart is racing, my eyes are wide, and the hairs on the
back of my neck are standing straight at attention. It’s almost as if I’m being watched. But I know that nobody can see in here.
There is nothing in the room, just me. My windows don’t open, and nobody could even get up here without going through a
million security passcodes, but I can’t shake the feeling. Someone is watching me. They must be. I just can’t figure out who,
where, or why.
Throwing my legs over the side of the bed, I shuffle into the bathroom to take care of business, wincing at how sore I am
between my legs. I’m not sure if I should still feel this way or not, but it aches.
I’m also not sure if I should have done what I did. And with a complete stranger, too. I don’t know if what I’m feeling is
regret or just fear of the unknown. I never imagined my first time like that, and I never thought I would walk into a sex club…
ever.
Slowly, I make my way back into the bedroom and stop at the sight in front of me. I blink a couple of times, willing the
image in front of me to disappear. Thinking that it could be my sleepy eyes playing tricks on me, maybe even just my
imagination.
But it’s still there.
He is still there.
I open my mouth to scream, but the shadow holds his hand up, and my lips close instantly. Following his silent order.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he murmurs. I recognize the voice.
It’s him.
The man from the club.
He’s lounging in my bed, his back against the headboard, his legs stretched out down my bed. It’s the stranger who took my
virginity. No, the stranger I gave my virginity to in an effort to take control over my own body and the future of my soul.
An effort to save myself.
“What are you doing here?” I hiss. “You can’t be here. And how…”
He throws his legs over the side of my bed. I watch in silence as he stands and starts to make his way toward me. He stops
a few feet away, his head tipped down as he watches me.
“I couldn’t just walk away from you,” he rasps.
“But you have to,” I state.
He chuckles. It’s low and sexy. For a moment, I think about running away with him, but then I shake my head and myself out
of it. I don’t even know who he is. He could be a mass murderer or something. The fact that he’s standing in my bedroom is
eerily concerning.
I’m not close enough to my phone to call security, and he is standing between me and my cell phone. Watching him, I
wonder what I should say, what I should do, but I’m frozen in my spot, holding my breath, too scared to even breathe.
“One more time, where we aren’t in a seedy club?” he asks. “Let me taste all of you.”
“I don’t even know your name,” I exhale, finally letting out the breath I have been holding.
 He doesn’t say anything. Instead, just like before, he lets out a humming noise as he makes his way toward me. One step,
then another, until he’s standing directly in front of me, so close that we’re almost touching.
My belly dips at the scent of him. He’s showered since I saw him a few hours ago. He smells spicy and sexy. I don’t even
know how to describe it as I inhale a deep breath and let it out slowly, allowing his smell to flow throughout my senses.
I want to commit this, him, to memory because I don’t think I’ll ever see him again, especially since I found out this evening
that I’ll be flying to Dallas in a couple of days to meet my new husband and hopefully be set free at the same time.
Freedom.
It’s been an illusion since I found out the truth. Since my parents signed a contract for marriage that included a pardon for
their debt. Assholes. I don’t care if their whole casino is ripped from their selfish hands. I don’t give a flying fuck at this point.
“One more time,” I agree.
His lips curve up into a smile, and he dips his chin, his lips touching mine in a brush of a kiss, which sends tingles
throughout my entire body. Not one single nerve ending is unaffected by this man’s touch.
“One more time,” he rasps.
And with those three words, nothing else needs to be said. His tongue fills my mouth, tasting all of me, every square inch of
my body, from head to toe. He worships me in ways that I didn’t even know were possible.
We don’t sleep.
Not for one minute.
By the time he leaves, my body is nothing but a pile of aching flesh and sweat. I’m completely boneless. He stands beside
the bed, completely dressed, while I’m naked with just the sheet to cover my body.
Turning my head, I look over at him, his lips twitching in a smirk. “Thank you,” he murmurs.
“Thank you?” I ask.
He nods his head once. “It’s me who should be thanking you. This was a gift given to me twice. One that I do not deserve.
So yeah. Thank you.”
Without another word, he turns on his heels and walks out of my bedroom. He doesn’t make a noise, not a single one. I wait
for someone in the house to hear him, to see him, to call out and question who he is, but there is nothing.
Not a single sound.
Rolling onto my back, I stare at the ceiling and let out a sigh. I didn’t expect that. Not a moment of it. And right now, I’m
wondering why I didn’t run after him.
That was beautiful.
Magical even.
I don’t know much about sex, but I would venture to guess that what we did, the way I felt, isn’t normal. Otherwise, I’m not
sure anyone would ever get anything done in their lives. They’d want nothing more than to stay in bed all day, every day. I’m
already wishing he were back here with me, and every single inch of my body aches.

COLEMAN

MY PHONE RINGS as I move through the casino and make my way out onto the street toward mine. I have to leave in a few
hours, although it’s the last fucking thing I want to do. Good news is, I was able to put a tracking app on Claire’s phone while
her ass was in the air and I was eating her sweet cunt. It makes me feel better that at least I’ll somewhat know where she is and
what she’s doing.
Somewhat, anyway.
As long as she doesn’t try to run off before she makes it to Dallas. Which I think she’s capable of doing, my little rebel.
Shoving my hand into my pocket, I slide my thumb across the screen and lift it to my ear.
“Talk to me, Danica,” I demand.
She lets out a laugh, clearing her throat before she speaks. She is as much “all business” as I am, and I have no doubt this is
only about work. “When will you be back to the office?” she asks.
I love her. She keeps me on track and organized. She never asks questions unless it’s important for the office. And this must
be important for work. Otherwise, she would not be asking me this. I move across the sidewalk and walk toward my casino.
“I’m leaving in a few hours,” I reply as I make my way into the hotel.
I can hear the alarms and sounds of the slot machines as they echo throughout the place. My feet move as quickly as
possible toward the elevator banks in search of quiet. Danica waits until there is no longer any noise before she speaks.
“We have a problem,” she murmurs.
“What’s that?” I demand.
She clears her throat. “Those people, the Simons?”
I know who they are because I just fucked their daughter, but I don’t tell her that. “Yes?” I ask.
 “They haven’t submitted their signed, notarized contract documents.”
Normally, something like this, because it includes a marriage in exchange for loan forgiveness, would not be notarized or
even documented much. It would be a simple document done in my father’s office that was vague at best.
This is different.
They owed the family a lot of money. We had to document the forgiveness of the loan, the loss of the money, and the interest
for our taxes.
Although the notarized documents don’t say anything about the wedding, just that we forgive the loan, taking it as a loss
never to be repaid, they will owe us nothing after a certain date, which is the day after the wedding.
“Did they say why?” I ask.
She doesn’t answer right away, then she clears her throat. “They said they want to wait until the wedding is over and your
part of the bargain is met.”
I almost laugh.
These people are stupid as fuck.
Danica knows I’m getting married. She has probably put two and two together, although I’ll never verbally admit it, and
neither will she. It will be one of those things that stays unspoken, and I’m good with that.
“Let me call my father. See what he says,” I murmur. “Has Wells been in the office?” I ask.
It’s not her job to keep tabs on him, but I am curious to know if he has or if he’s taken advantage of me not being around. He
always says I make him too nervous, that I am far too controlling to get shit handled, but I think he just likes me doing it all so
he can fuck around.
“He has,” she says. “He had a few meetings with investors and then had a meeting with a new buyer. He also was in on the
meeting with your father and the government passport agency, finalizing the contracts and lease of that building.”
I smile.
That deal is a done deal, and while it was nothing but turmoil at the time, I am glad to have it almost completed. We need
passports. We need the government to be a little further in our pockets. We need a hell of a lot of cushion in this fucking world.
“Good. Let me go ahead and call my dad. I’ll get back to you. Don’t worry about the documents yet. I’ll make sure they are
signed. And Danica?” I call out softly, trying not to be too loud as I move through the hallway. She’s quiet for a moment, and I
take that as my signal to continue. “Thank you,” I say.
“Thank you?”
She sounds just as inquisitive as Claire did, and I realize I’ve never thanked Danica. She does her job, I pay her, and that is
that. But this feels different. She deserves the thanks she has coming, if for nothing else than her loyalty.
“Yes, Danica. Thank you. For being available, for being loyal. For always being prepared. It means a lot to the family and
to me.”
Her breath hitches, and then she clears her throat. “Well, I appreciate that, Coleman. I feel like I’m part of your family, and
I just appreciate all you do for me.”
She should. I pay her well, and her bonuses are in the tens of thousands every year. She is irreplaceable. And I don’t know
what I’m going to do when she decides to retire.
“You’re one of us. Just know this.”
She gives me her thanks once more, and then I hear her sniffle before she rushes me off the phone. With a chuckle, I shove
my phone into my pocket as I walk into my hotel room but pause when I realize I’m not alone.
It doesn’t take much, just a single step inside, and I am without a doubt sure there is someone in my room, and it isn’t
housekeeping.
 Chapter

Seven

COLEMAN

BRYSON S IMON STANDS AT THE WINDOW OF MY HOTEL ROOM, HIS FATHER BESIDE HIM, AND WHAT APPEARS TO BE A YOUNGER
teen boy as well, who must be the youngest Simon, Andrew. My lips twitch into a smile at the sight of the two oldest ones
attempting to be tough. The youngest seems as though he would like to be anywhere but here, and I don’t blame him.
Closing the door behind me, I don’t bother feeling intimidated or even the slightest bit worried by their appearance.
They’re trying to be threatening, but it doesn’t work. I’m not someone who can be frightened. That was beat out of me at a
young age as part of my training.
“To what do I owe the pleasure of your presence in my hotel suite?” I ask.
Bryson growls but doesn’t say anything. It’s clear he is not in charge, just the tattletale. Andrew doesn’t even look up. His
gaze is on the floor at his feet, and I can tell he’s trembling just by the quick glance in his direction. He seems a bit more aware
of what’s happening around him and what position he’s in.
“You thought it was appropriate to go to my oldest child and not only intimidate him but also threaten him?” Aaron, the
father, barks before he takes a step forward.
He reminds me so much of Ray Randolph in this moment, a man playing at being strong, but in reality, he is weak. The
weakest kind of man. Anyone who would sell their child for a clean loan because they spent too much money selfishly is
fucking weak.
“Does it matter?” I ask.
He presses his lips together in a thin line, jerking his chin upward. Clearly, it matters. I have to leave in a few hours, and
although my bags are packed, I’d like to get something to eat and take a shower before I travel, but this asshole is going to take
that away from me.
“Bryson here thought he would meet his sister in a club and then just leave her there alone. I didn’t like that. I had
something to say about that, and I made myself clear. What is your fucking reason for coming here?” I ask.
Aaron turns his head to look at Bryson, then shifts his attention back to me. “Don’t threaten my family,” he states. “Claire
isn’t yours yet.”
My lips curve up into a grin. “And your loan isn’t forgiven yet.”
His eyes widen, and he blinks once, then twice. I don’t know what he thought I was going to say or do today, but it’s clear
he expected me to back down in some way. Laughing once, I shake my head, unbelieving that these people can be so fucking
stupid.
“Fuck,” he hisses.
He should. “So is this where I tell you that you need to pay in full before I leave?” I ask.
Aaron opens his mouth, then snaps it shut, then opens it and snaps it closed again. Bryson takes a step forward, but Aaron
reaches out, wrapping his fingers around his shoulder and hauling him backward.
“No,” Aaron barks. “No, don’t do that.”
I smile as he begins to sweat.
It’s clear that he likes the arrangement but is wrestling with it at the same time. He’s just plain weak. I have no other
thoughts about him. Nobody could take my daughter from me, to own, to consume. And yet, he simply just handed her over to
save his own ass.
“Then get the fuck out. I’ll see you in a couple of days.”
He nods his head once, then grabs Andrew’s bicep before dragging him out of the room. Andrew looks back at me, his eyes
finding mine, and I can read the silent plea in them. I realize that in this moment, he’s very much like Claire. Bryson doesn’t
move. His eyes focus on mine, and I can see the anger in them. He takes a step forward, but I can’t do anything other than smirk
at him.
He’s ridiculous as fuck.
Bryson tilts his head to the side, his eyes focused on mine. I wait for him to say something, anything, but he just watches me
for a long moment. “You’re disgusting,” he hisses. “I hope you lose everything. Absolutely fucking everything.”
“Hoping your sister’s life turns to shit isn’t what you want, is it?” I ask.
He shrugs a shoulder. “Isn’t her life already shit?”
Instead of saying anything else, I take a step forward and watch him break out in a sweat at my closeness. He suddenly
doesn’t seem so tough. Instead, he takes a step backward to get away from me. He looks scared, and my lips curve up into a
grin.
“Maybe it is now, but it won’t be. Why don’t you worry about yourself and your doctor shit?”
“This will not work out for you,” he hisses as he takes a step forward.
I choose not to engage with him any longer. I could say so many things, but it’s pointless. Claire is already mine. Even if
she doesn’t know it yet. She will always be mine, bought, paid for, and owned in every way possible.
“Bryson, you are in over your head. What will not work out is your attempt to threaten me. I am not the fucking one to fuck
with. There’s a reason your father walked out of here with his tail between his legs.” I take a step toward him. “Do not attempt
to fuck with me.”
Holding his gaze, I do not blink, and I do not back down. What I do is silently challenge him. He doesn’t last long before he
takes a step backward, then moves around me, breaking eye contact, and just like his father, he walks toward the door with his
tail between his legs.
“Bryson?” I call out.
He stops, turning his head and looking over his shoulder at me. His lips are pressed together in a thin line as he stares at
me, his eyes narrowed. There is clear hatred in his gaze, and as much as that should bother me, it doesn’t.
“Don’t make your sister’s life miserable by being negative about this. We’re going to be family, and there is nothing that
can change that.”
He jerks his chin but doesn’t reply. Instead, he turns back toward the door, and I watch him walk out. I don’t miss Aaron
and Andrew Simon standing in the hallway waiting for Bryson.
Weak cowards, all of them. The only one with any fucking backbone is Claire herself. I grin at the thought of her. She
walked into that sex club, bound and determined to gain full control of her situation.
She didn’t. But it was cute as fuck that she tried. I admire her, really. Even if it is all for naught because she is going to end
up with me anyway. She is the one for me, and I realize it now more than ever.
Claire Simon is definitely my earned prize.

CLAIRE

ONCE I’ VE RESTED A BIT , I shower and dress for the day. When I’m done, I take a good, long, hard look at myself in the mirror.
My eyes scan my entire body, looking for any sign that I’ve lost my innocence, but I find nothing. I look the exact same as I did
before I had sex. I don’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t this.
I wanted there to be some kind of clear sign that I’d done the deed, but there isn’t. With a heavy sigh, I leave my nearly
empty bedroom and head for the kitchen. I’m starving. When I walk into the room, I am surprised to find my brothers and father
sitting at the breakfast room table, seemingly deep in conversation.
They all stop speaking when they notice me.
Nobody says a single word, their eyes swinging over to meet mine. They watch me, almost as if I’m a caged animal they’re
observing. I give them a smile and move around the kitchen to get something to eat.
I don’t ask what’s going on or what they’re talking about. I don’t care. They can have their secret meetings because I know
that in a few weeks, it won’t matter because I’ll either be married or free.
I’m banking on free.
Once I’m able to leave, I’m going to go far away from Vegas and Dallas. I’m going to Florida, where I can enjoy the sun
and sand in peace. It doesn’t take me long to get some food, deciding on some leftover Chinese from the other night, and I start
to head back to eat it alone in my bedroom since it’s clear that my family doesn’t want me in here with them.
“We leave first thing in the morning. Make sure you’re ready to go,” my father calls out.
“All of my things have been shipped off to Dallas already. I have one suitcase full of clothes and toiletries. I could be ready
in five minutes,” I mutter.
My father growls. “Don’t be a smart-ass,” he snaps.
Instead of staying and arguing, I head to my room and am surprised to see Shelby sitting on the edge of my bed. It’s not like
her to be in my room or anywhere in my vicinity, really.
I move to the reading chair in the corner of the room and gingerly sink down onto the cushion. I don’t say a word to my
little sister, knowing she has something she wants to say to me. She’s choosing her words, though I’m sure she’s choosing them
to bite, as always.
“I still don’t understand why it’s you and not me. I’m prettier,” she snaps.
She sounds like a jealous little girl who didn’t get picked for dance team.
“It doesn’t matter what we think,” I reply. “The decision has been made. There’s nothing else to be done about it.”
“Run away,” she whispers. “Just run so I can be the queen.”
I almost laugh at her, but instead, I feel pity. She wants to live this life? Why? I have no doubt that her desire to be in my
shoes is merely because my mother has somehow built it up in her head as if I’m going to be someone special now.
“If I run, then who knows what will happen to the family.”
She leans forward, her eyes finding mine. “They don’t care who is in the wedding dress at the end of the aisle as long as
she’s a virgin.”
“And you are?” I ask.
Her lips curve up into a grin. “I’m young enough and do enough Kegels to pass, and I have tightening cream. They’ll never
know.”
I could tell her that they would figure it out. No doubt about it. These men, if they specifically requested a virgin, they’d
know if she wasn’t. I keep my smile plastered on my face.
“I’m not going to run away. I agreed to this, so it’s what I’ll do.” My words are a lie. I didn’t agree to shit. I want to run
away. And I don’t want to do any of this. But I’m going to because even if she acts like this is something she wants, I don’t
believe a word she’s saying.
“I still think it’s stupid. Mom and Dad should have never agreed,” she whispers. “You’re not even pretty,” she repeats
herself. I hate that her words affect me. They shouldn’t. I know they are just petty jealousy.
“Better pack your bags. We leave tomorrow morning,” I say as I get up.
Shelby calls out my name. I stop with my fingers wrapped around the doorknob, turn my head, and look over my shoulder at
her. She is watching me, a confused expression on her face. I wish I could tell her the truth, my plan, but it would put everything
in jeopardy, and I can’t have that. It would make her flock to these people.
So there is nothing else to do but pretend that I have accepted my fate and that I am going to do this without complaint.
Every single second of every day, I am, without a doubt, dying inside. Although, that stranger, the one who came to my bed, the
one I gave my virginity to, made everything a bit more bearable.
Wonderfully so.
There is silence, complete silence, as she watches me, then she lowers her gaze to her lap. “I know I’m a bitch, and I’ll be
glad when Mom and Dad have their finances back in order, but I’m going to miss you.”
I bite the inside of my cheek as I watch her. She stands and walks past me, ignoring me completely, then vanishes down the
hall. If someone told me that she was adopted, I wouldn’t be surprised. I have blonde hair, while she’s a vibrant redhead.
Where I’m curvier, she’s long and thin, waiflike and stunningly beautiful.
She’s always been this bright beacon, and I’ve always been a dull lamppost, one of those ones in the shopping mall parking
lot that’s about to go out. That’s me. Dull, lifeless, plain. Except when the stranger looked at me, touched me, was inside of me.
Only then did I feel beautiful and desirable.
I wish I knew his name, knew who he was, could find him again. I would run away with him. At least run to him and beg
him, get down on my hands and knees for him. Whatever he wanted me to do, I would do it just to avoid this coming week.
Because I can’t deny I’m terrified of what my husband-to-be will do to me once I tell him I am no longer a prized virgin.
Allowing me to leave will be the best-case scenario.
The worst?
Death.
 Chapter

Eight

COLEMAN

I WALK INTO MY FATHER’ S OFFICE AND SINK DOWN IN THE CHAIR ACROSS FROM HIM WITH A HEAVY SIGH. HE WATCHES ME FOR A
moment, his gaze taking me in, then he leans back and lifts his hands to his mouth.
“Well,” he says. “All is well?”
I grin. “Very well.”
He shakes his head. “You’re not going to elaborate?”
Shrugging a shoulder, I inhale a deep breath, holding it for a moment before I let it out slowly. “I could,” I reply. “The
Simons are a flawed family, but she was and is a good choice for me, the daughter.”
“They are?” he asks.
Clearing my throat, I jerk my chin. “The oldest son has some wild idea that he’s going to do something to stop this wedding.
Although, when pressed, it’s clear he will do nothing. He is soft.
“The father is weak, which I already knew, but he solidified that. For whatever reason, he thinks he’s holding something
above me by not signing the loan forgiveness contract before the wedding. He attempted to threaten me with it but quickly
backtracked.”
Dad chuckles, shaking his head. “It’s a funny thing what people will say and do when they feel backed into a corner. You
and me?” he continues, “we will fight, claw, maim our way out of the corner. Men like that? They will forever dip their chins
and cower.”
He’s right. That is exactly what they did. All three of them. Bryson tried the hardest to stand up, to fight, but it fell flat. He
just isn’t man enough, and he’s got the same selfish traits as his parents.
“We will,” I agree with my father. “There is something else.”
I could keep it all a secret, not tell him, but I don’t want him to push meeting her before the wedding. I want it all to be a
surprise. It’s a thought that came to me when I was flying here from Vegas.
I’m not sure why, but something inside of me is screaming to have her appear at the end of the aisle on our wedding day and
look down it to discover that I am the man who not only took her virginity but also stalked her, broke into her parents’ casino
condo, and fucked her again and again.
So there is no way around it. I have to tell my father exactly what happened. Which is what I do. But I don’t go into gross
detail, just enough that he gets the gist of what’s happened. I fucked my bride without her knowing who I was. She was indeed a
virgin. She is my prize, and I wish to keep her.
“Well,” he says. “Okay, then. I will give strict instructions that she will not be invited to the meeting tomorrow. Perhaps
Parker can take her around the city and get to know her, considering they will be sisters in a few short days,” he suggests.
My lips twitch into a smirk. I can only imagine what Parker is going to tell my new bride. However, I’m good with that. I
jerk my chin in nonverbal confirmation, and my father leans forward.
“Now that we’re done with that, and now that I’ve mentioned her, we need to talk about a note your brother received. Well,
Parker received.”
“A note?”
He dips his chin in a single nod, then clears his throat. “Here,” he murmurs, digging his phone out of his pocket and sliding
it across to me. I pick it up and look at the picture. It’s a handwritten one-line note.

Ask your fiancé’s father who killed your parents.

 He knows.

“What the fuck?” I ask. “Who did this?”

Dad shakes his head in a quick jerk. “It wasn’t mailed. It was dropped in their mailbox. Whoever did this got into their
building undetected and knew exactly where to leave that envelope.”
“Ray is dead,” I point out.
“But his men aren’t. Whoever the fuck they are.”
Crossing my ankle over my knee, I lean back a bit more and rub my chin a few times. “They are all big players. We need to
sit down with Hendrick and see what we can find. It’s clear that this isn’t going to go away.”
“Clearly,” my dad mutters. “But whoever this is knows. This is more than just some government fat cat sitting in an office
getting off on fucking unwilling, kidnapped women.”
“It is,” I agree. “There is something going on here, and I don’t like it.”
“Who could it be?” he asks.
I stand, walk over to the window, and look out at the Downtown Dallas sidewalks. They aren’t nearly as crowded as
Vegas, but there is something to be said for the calmness it makes me feel to look at the people moving through my hometown.
“Don’t know, but if anyone can find out, it will be Hendrick.”
“It will,” he agrees. “They can’t get married soon enough.”
Frowning, I watch him for a long moment, then I turn around and look at him full on. “I think it’s about time to tell me what
is really going on with Parker’s family’s death.”
He clears his throat, then stands to his feet. I watch him as he gathers his phone and shoves it into his pocket. “It doesn’t
matter. What we need to worry about is this meeting, this letter, and getting Hendrick to work. We also have a few contracts
that need to be looked over and scheduled for signings.”
“Danica is on the contracts,” I say with a chuckle. “I’ll arrange a meet with Hendrick and Wells immediately.”
“And I got the new in-law situation taken care of. Those people will do anything I demand,” he murmurs.
“Are you sure?”
He laughs. “I’ll make that motherfucker kiss my shoe.”
“Bets?” I ask.
“Go and get your brothers handled,” he chuckles. “See you at the meet tomorrow. Your mother is a ball of fucking nerves. I
gotta go home and fuck her so she calms down about the whole thing.”
“There are some things a son doesn’t need to know about his mother and father,” I point out the obvious.
“Yeah.” He gives me a smirk. “But your mother was my prize, and she’s always been my fucking prize. Best decision I ever
made, choosing her.”
Without another word, he walks out of his office, leaving me alone. I don’t follow him. Instead, I dig my phone out of my
pocket, thumb through it, and find the tracking app. Smiling, I sink my teeth into my bottom lip as it pulls her up.
She’s on the plane headed here. I can’t wait to fucking see her again. And I will. There is no way we’re going to be in the
same town and me not see her until the wedding day. I’m going to fuck her again tonight, too.

CLAIRE

WHEN THE PLANE TOUCHES DOWN , I feel… uneasy. My anger has completely left me, so has betrayal. Now I’m just uneasy,
mainly because I have no idea how my fiancé is going to take the fact that I’m no longer a virgin.
I’m now regretting my plan. Not that I regret losing my virginity, because the night with the stranger was amazing. But I
regret the way I did it, that when I tell him I’m going to either die or be freed and I’m not ready to die.
My heart races and sweat starts gathering at the small of my back. Sucking in a breath, I pinch my eyes closed right before
the captain says that we can take our seat belts off and disembark.
It takes too long for us to get off the hot plane. I’m no longer sweating because of nerves but because there is no air
conditioner. Like a group of people who have never traveled before, we make a whole scene, gathering our stuff and heading
toward the baggage claim.
There is a man standing next to the baggage claim carousel with a sign showing our last name scrawled across it. He’s
handsome, young, wearing a suit. His eyes find mine, and then they shift to Shelby. Shit. Stepping in front of her, I tip my head
backward.
“Are you taking us to our hotel?” I ask.
He dips his chin, his eyes finding mine, but only to respond to me. “Simon?”
 “Yes,” I murmur.
“Then yes. I am to take you and your family to your hotel.”
I almost ask him where that is, but I don’t think he would tell me. It seems like he’s one of my dad’s security guard goons. I
already know it’s useless to ask them any questions, mainly because they don’t know much of anything.
“Follow me,” he announces as he turns around and begins to walk toward the exit doors.
I follow behind him, hitching my backpack on my shoulders as my family grunts and moans behind me, hauling their luggage
through the airport. I ignore them, much as I’ve done this entire trip.
They act like this is some fun vacation. Well, everyone except for Andrew. He appears to be silently concerned about the
proceedings. I don’t blame him. I feel the exact same way, except I’m majorly concerned.
Keeping my head up and my eyes open, I follow this man toward a waiting black SUV.
“You in the front seat.” He turns to face me.
I watch as he reaches for the handle of the passenger door and tugs it open. Wordlessly, his gaze focuses on mine, and I feel
like he’s trying to tell me something, but I don’t know what it could be. So instead of trying to figure it out for a second longer, I
climb into the front seat and set my backpack between my feet.
A few moments later, my family joins me, and the driver loads their luggage before he jumps into the front seat of the SUV
and starts the engine, then pulls out onto the street. Keeping my gaze focused on the side window, I watch as the city comes into
view.
It isn’t quite like Vegas, but it’s still a big city. Another city, another life. Another world. I don’t know what to expect, and
while I felt so brave, I’m not feeling that way any longer. I want to curl into a ball and cry, then disappear and not have to admit
what I’ve done to this man who bought me.
He bought a human.
What does that make him?
And more importantly, what does that make me?
Am I his whore? His slave? His property?
 Chapter

Nine

COLEMAN

HENDRICK’ S EYES WIDEN WHEN HE READS THE NOTE WELLS SLIDES ACROSS THE TABLE TOWARD HIM. WE’ RE HAVING DINNER,
just the three of us. Tomorrow is the meeting with Claire’s family, and I wanted to talk with my brothers ahead of time, on more
than one topic.
This note is just the first.
“Can you find out who left this at their condo?” I ask.
Hendrick grasps the note in one hand and his cocktail in the other. I watch as he lifts the glass to his lips, taking a sip,
before he sits back and scans the note more than once. It’s not that he’s trying to decipher what it says or anything—it’s pretty
cut and dry—but I wonder what he’s looking at. Then he leans forward again, placing his glass on the table before his gaze
flicks up.
“They dropped it at your place?” he asks Wells.
“It was in the mail, no stamp, no postmark. Nothing,” Wells states.
He hums. “Did you get the mail the day before this was dropped?”
Wells jerks his chin in a single nod before he speaks. “Parker is good about the mail. She checks it daily. I think she just
likes opening envelopes.” He chuckles. “Maybe looks out for her online shopping packages.”
My lips twitch into a smile thinking about Parker and imagining her hurrying to the mailbox daily to check for packages.
“Then I can possibly hack into the security system and see who dropped it off, but beyond that, I don’t know what I can do,”
he murmurs. “I can add some more security to your place, but you’re pretty well covered already.”
Wells nods a couple of times. “I am,” he agrees. “Every single square inch of that place is covered by a camera. I’m not
worried about my place as much as I am this person not only knowing what happened but then telling Parker.”
“That’s the last thing we need right now in the family,” I point out.
Both of my brothers lift their chins in a single jerk. I watch them for a moment, then lean back in my chair and reach for a
roll in the basket at the center of the table. Letting out a heavy sigh, I look between them.
“So what do we do past the camera thing?” I ask. “What about your contacts in that world, Hendrick?”
“That world?” Hendrick asks, acting like he doesn’t understand what I’m asking,
Leaning forward, I pull off a chunk of bread and chew it slowly, my eyes finding his. “The one we just interrupted. Ray
Randolph’s operation. Those three fuckers we killed were not the only ones who were in that world, Hendrick.”
His gaze flicks to the table as obvious shame slides over his face before he lifts his head, his gaze searching mine for a
moment. “Yeah, I know of a couple people. Nobody really used names, but I recognized them.”
“Could it be them?” I ask.
It fucking feels like I’m pulling this information out of him. Fucking shit. I want to shake his ass. But thankfully, he clears
his throat before he decides to answer me. But first, he takes another drink of his cocktail.
“I don’t think it’s them.”
I roll my eyes and let out a deep grunt before I straighten and reconnect my gaze with his. “Then who the fuck do you think
it could be? That’s all I got. Uncle Dean, Ray, Shiloh, and her mom are all gone.”
Hendrick shrugs a shoulder. “They aren’t our only enemies. Honestly, it could be anyone.”
“Could be within,” Wells murmurs.
“Within?” I ask.
I’m trying to think of why anyone in the family would want to fuck over our dad, but then I realize why wouldn’t they? He’s
the king of the family, the director. If someone wanted his spot, what better way to try and get it than to take out the goddamn
king?
“Could it be Uncle Dean’s sons?” I ask. “They have the most ammo. We killed their father right in front of them.”
My brothers lift their brows, their eyes wide as they think about that. Could it be them? Our cousins aren’t really the type to
go against the director, our father, but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t.
Uncle Dean himself fucked up to the point where he got himself taken out by the family, and he’s not the first one to do that,
either. Then there’s the fact that I had to take out my own aunt, and if I were my cousins, I would be fucking pissed about that.
Not that anyone told them, but it’s not like it is hard to figure out. So I shouldn’t be surprised, and I’m not.
But I don’t believe it’s them, at least without further investigating. “Let’s just keep this between us,” I offer.
Neither of them comments on whether they think it could be our cousins or not. And to be fair, every single member of the
family is family, and we’ve had to take care of members more than once due to betrayal.
“Between us, and also, ears and eyes open,” Wells states.
I lift my glass and hold it out. Wells and Hendrick do the same, and we clink glasses. “Between us,” they say in unison.
No matter what, I know that, irrevocably, these men have my back, always. Nothing, nobody, not a fucking thing could
break the bond I have with my brothers. Not even Hendrick doing some stupid shit like trying to catch a thrill by paying to fuck
a kidnapped enslaved woman. Even though that fucking bullshit made me want to beat the ever-living fuck out of him.
We finish our dinner and drinks, although I’m not really present. All I can think about is Claire. She’s here in Dallas,
staying at the Rosewood Mansions. I already know exactly which room is hers, and I have a key considering I booked it for her
and Hendrick was the one who took her to the hotel under the guise of a driver.
“You good?” Hendrick asks, taking me out of my thoughts.
I lift my eyes, my gaze finding his. “Yeah, just thinking,” I murmur.
Hendrick laughs. “She’s beautiful,” he says.
My brows knit together, and I lean back in my seat. “I know.” I wonder why he’s saying this shit to me. He looked at her,
which instantly makes me want to choke him from across the table.
He keeps his lips turned up into a grin, his eyes searching mine. “I know she’s yours,” he says. “But she’s beautiful. You
know I like blondes.”
“How is Allison?” I ask.
He lifts his hand and flips me off, laughing as he does. The rest of the dinner, our conversation shifts to bachelor parties and
what to do. Neither Wells nor I am really thinking about strippers.
We’ve had parties with women before that would probably put most bachelor parties to shame. I’m not sure that we even
need to do anything, but Hendrick insists we both need to figure something out because it would be breaking tradition if we
didn’t. Perhaps even a joint thing.
I vote for a weekend at a house on the lake, maybe some poker, some skiing, and just relaxing with us and our cousins.
Hendrick rolls his eyes, obviously not intrigued by the idea, but I can tell Wells thinks it’s plausible.

CLAIRE

THE HOTEL IS NICE. Like, really nice. I’m not sure what I expected, but it wasn’t anything quite like this. It’s one huge house or
condo almost. There are rooms on one side, a dining room, a kitchen, and a living room, then another room on the other side,
which is clearly the master suite.
My parents naturally move toward the master suite, and I let them have it, mainly because they would probably cause a big
stink if I didn’t, and it’s not worth the fight. Thankfully, with the three other bedrooms, my brothers decide to share a room,
leaving my sister and me to our own spaces.
Locking the door to my room, I let out a breath, closing my eyes for a moment before I begin to unpack my things. It doesn’t
take me long. My small backpack isn’t big enough to hold much, and while I know that my things are here in Dallas with
Coleman, I have no idea where they are exactly.
I should probably ask, but I don’t care, and I’m kind of hoping that I can get out of here before I find out. These people can
keep it all. If it means my freedom, I don’t care one little bit. Stuff doesn’t mean much, but freedom means everything.
Once everything from my backpack is placed in the dresser drawers, I decide to take a shower. I walk into my en suite and
find the bathtub, and my bones ache to be inside the warm water.
Looking over my shoulder at the closed and locked bedroom door, I wonder how much time I have before I’m supposed to
meet with my new family. How much time do I have before I blow this whole lie out of the water?
I’m no longer the pure virgin they ordered, and I’m ready to walk away… no, run. I’m ready to run away as far and fast as I
can. Sucking in a deep breath, I start running the water in the bathtub and decide that one last bath won’t hurt.
I stare at the empty tub as the water slowly rises. It’s probably too hot, but I don’t care. Stripping out of my clothes, I sink
down in the two inches of water, closing my eyes and leaning backward as the hot water washes over my skin.
 Slowly, the tub fills with clear water, and when it’s close to spilling over the edge, only then do I sit up and turn it off. I
lean back again, close my eyes, and just relax. I’m not sure how long I stay in the tub, but when the water goes cold and I begin
to shiver, I decide to climb out.
I find it odd that nobody in my family has knocked on the door to tell me it’s time to leave, but it doesn’t matter. I’ll get
ready and go when it’s time. Who knows what these people are doing anyway? It’s not like anyone has been very forthcoming,
or maybe they just aren’t with me.
Rummaging through my drawers, I realize I have nothing in here that is appropriate for meeting my new in-laws. I have
leggings, oversized T-shirts, and cotton shorts to sleep in with spaghetti-strap tanks.
Chewing on the corner of my bottom lip, I throw on an oversized T-shirt and head out of the room and toward my sister’s to
see if she has something I can borrow. Except when I open the door, I’m met with the sound of silence.
No televisions, no people chatting, nothing. Turning, I make my way toward my sister’s room and open the door, only to
find it empty. I move from room to room and discover that they’re all empty. Even my parents’ room is vacant.
A chill slides down my spine as I stand in the middle of the living room in this gorgeous resort hotel, completely alone with
no idea why or where my family has gone. When there is a sound at the door, I jump and turn, then I watch as the lock slowly
flips to “unlocked,” then the knob turns and the door itself opens.
I don’t scream. I don’t do a damn thing but stand in the middle of the room wearing nothing except underwear and an
oversized T-shirt.
A man walks into the foyer. He’s tall, he’s dark-haired, he’s tattooed, he’s beautiful.
He’s my stranger.
My pussy instantly tingles and then pulses once at the sight of him, and a light sheen of sweat breaks out over my entire
body as my heart races against my rib cage. I am frozen in place, unsure of what to do or where to go.
I stare at him, shocked and overwhelmed at the sight of him.
“Hey, hummingbird,” he murmurs.
His voice washes over me, consumes me, and in an instant, I am calm and even relieved. I don’t know why he’s here or
how he found me, and I’m not in a state to actually think about it, either. Instead, I rush toward him. Thankful, grateful to have
him in front of me. A familiar calm washes over me as I lift my hands, cup his bearded cheeks and place my lips against his in
a kiss.
“You’re here,” I exhale against his mouth.
 Chapter

Ten

COLEMAN

IT WASN ’ T QUITE THE WELCOME I EXPECTED FROM HER. IT ’ S BETTER. HER LIPS AGAINST MINE FEEL LIKE I’ VE COME HOME. S HE
can’t become my wife soon enough. Reaching down, I wrap my fingers around her ass, feeling her panties with a groan as I
pick her up.
I could walk her into a bedroom, but I decide against it, mainly because I know her family will be occupied for hours. I
should probably be there with them, but I am letting my father, the director, handle all of this.
I’ve already met these assholes, and I have no reason to spend any more time with them than I’m forced to.
I’d rather have my dick buried balls deep inside of my future wife.
I break the kiss, and my lips slide down her throat as I grip her shirt and pull it over her body, throwing it somewhere in the
room, not giving a fuck where it lands. Not a single goddamn fuck.
Gripping her panties, I suck and lick her throat as I rip them to shreds at her hips. When I sink my teeth into the side of her
neck, where her shoulder and neck meet, she whimpers, and her hands fly to my shoulders, her nails digging into me through my
shirt.
Releasing my bite, I lift my head and flick my gaze to her neck. I didn’t break skin, but I can see the marks my teeth left
behind, which causes me to smirk at the same time my dick twitches.
She is mine.
Dipping my chin, I slide my tongue across the marks I made in an effort to soothe them before I lift my head, my eyes
finding hers. “I still don’t know your name,” she exhales.
“Does it matter?” I slide my hand between us and glide my fingers between her legs.
She’s warm and wet, excited to see me, to feel my touch, and I wonder if the wedding night is going to feel this fucking
good once she realizes who I am or if this is just because it’s seemingly forbidden.
“No,” she cries as I slip two fingers inside of her and curl them.
Sinking my teeth into my bottom lip, I try not to smile at the sight of her as she rolls her hips, and her body silently begs for
more. It’s beautiful, the way she allows her body to just feel now. There is no tightness in her muscles. The way she moves is
instinctual now.
She knows how good I’m going to make her feel, and she trusts me to do that for her.
It doesn’t take long for her to find her release. She is on a mission, her body begging and searching hard and fast, knowing
how good it’s going to feel once she gets there.
And when her head falls back and her nails dig even harder into my shoulder, I know there will be marks there from her,
but watching her come completely undone beneath my touch is worth everything.
And she does.
She lifts her head, her gaze finding mine, her body trembling as I guide my fingers from between her legs. Instead of wiping
them off, I slip them between my lips so I can taste her. Because I’m not eating her out today.
I’m going to fuck her so hard she won’t be able to walk down the aisle without thinking of me every fucking step of the
way.
Once I’ve licked my fingers clean, I reach out and wrap them around the front of her throat, squeezing it as I gently push
downward. Her knees bend, and she slowly sinks down to the carpeted floor.
Releasing my grasp on her throat, I tilt my head as I look down at her. Smirking, I reach out and trace her lips with my index
finger. She watches me, her gaze searching mine as she stares up at me.
I’m going to own all of her soon. Every single square inch of her. Without me needing to say a word, she reaches up and
Another random document with
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which the spermatozoa are packed; they are often very large and assume
characteristic shapes, especially in the Decapoda.
The spermatozoa show a great variety of structure, but they conform to
two chief types—the filiform, which are provided with a long whip-like
flagellum; and the amoeboid, which are furnished with radiating
pseudopodia, and are much slower in their movements. The amoeboid
spermatozoa of some of the Decapoda contain in the cell-body a peculiar
chitinous capsule, and Koltzoff[12] has observed that when the
spermatozoon has settled upon the surface of the egg the chitinous
capsule becomes suddenly exceedingly hygroscopic, swells up, and
explodes, driving the head of the spermatozoon into the egg. We cannot
enter here into a description of the embryological changes by which the
egg is converted into the adult form. Crustacean eggs as a whole contain a
large quantity of yolk, but in some forms total segmentation occurs in the
early stages, which is converted later into the pyramidal type, i.e. the
blastomeres are arranged round the edge, and the yolk in the centre is
only partly segmented to correspond with them. The eggs during the early
stages of development are in almost all cases (except Branchiura, p. 77,
and Anaspides, p. 116) carried about by the female either in a brood-
pouch (Branchiopoda, Ostracoda, Cirripedia, Phyllocarida, Peracarida),
or agglutinated to the hind legs or some other part of the body (Copepoda,
Eucarida), or in a chamber formed from the maxillipedes (Stomatopoda).
Development may be direct, without a complicated metamorphosis, or
indirect, the larva hatching out in a form totally different to the adult
state, and attaining the latter by a series of transformations and moults.
The various larval forms will be described under the headings of the
several orders.
The respiratory organs are typically branchiae, i.e. branched
filamentous or foliaceous processes of the body-surface through which
the blood circulates, and is brought into close relation with the oxygen
dissolved in the water. In most of the smaller Entomostraca no special
branchiae are present, the interchange of gases taking place over the
whole body-surface; but in the Malacostraca the gills may reach a high
degree of specialisation. They are usually attached to the bases of the
thoracic limbs (“podobranchiae”), to the body-wall at the bases of these
limbs, often in two series (“arthrobranchiae”), and to the body-wall some
way above the limb-articulations (“pleurobranchiae”). In an ideal scheme
each thoracic appendage beginning with the first maxillipede would
possess a podobranch, two arthrobranchs, and a pleurobranch, but the
full complement of gills is never present, various members of the series
being suppressed in the various orders, and thus giving rise to “branchial
formulae” typical of the different groups.
After this brief survey of Crustacean organisation we may be able to
form an opinion upon the position of the Crustacea relative to other
Arthropoda, and upon the question debated some time ago in the pages of
Natural Science[13] whether the Arthropoda constitute a natural group.
The Crustacea plainly agree with all the other Arthropoda in the
possession of a rigid exoskeleton segmented into a number of somites, in
the possession of jointed appendages metamerically repeated, some of
which are modified to act as jaws; they further agree in the general
correspondence of the number of segments of which the body is
primitively composed; the condition of the body-cavity or haemocoel is
also similar in the adult state. An apparently fundamental difference is
found in the entire absence during development of a segmented coelom,
but since this organ breaks down and is much reduced in all adult
Arthropods, it is not difficult to believe that its actual formation in the
embryo as a distinct structure might have been secondarily suppressed in
Crustacea.
The method of breathing by gills is paralleled by the respiratory
structures found in Limulus and Scorpions; the transition, if it occurred,
from branchiae to tracheae cannot, it is true, be traced, but the separation
of Arthropods into phyletically distinct groups of Tracheata and
Branchiata on this single characteristic is inadmissible. On the whole the
Crustacea may be considered as Arthropods whose progenitors are to be
sought for among the Trilobita, from whose near relations also probably
sprang Limulus and the Arachnids.
 CHAPTER II
CRUSTACEA (CONTINUED): ENTOMOSTRACA
—BRANCHIOPODA—PHYLLOPODA—
CLADOCERA—WATER-FLEAS

SUB-CLASS I.—ENTOMOSTRACA.

The Entomostraca are mostly small Crustacea in which the

segmentation of the body behind the head is very variable, both in regard
to the number of segments and the kind of differentiation exhibited by
those segments and their appendages. An unpaired simple eye, known as
the Nauplius eye from its universal presence in that larval form, often
persists in the adult, and though lateral compound eyes may be present
they are rarely borne on movable stalks. In the adult the excretory gland
(“shell-gland”) opens on the second maxillary segment, but in the larval
state or early stages of development a second antennary gland may also
be present, which disappears in the adult. The liver usually points
forwards, and is simple and saccular in structure, and the stomach is not
complicated by the formation of a gastric mill. With the exception of most
Cladocera and Ostracoda the young hatch out in the Nauplius state.

Order I. Branchiopoda.[14]

The Branchiopods are of small or moderate size, with flattened and

lobate post-cephalic limbs, and with functional gnathobases. Median and
lateral eyes are nearly always present. The labrum is large, and the second
maxillae are small or absent in the adult.
Branchiopods are found in every part of the world; a few are marine,
but the great majority are confined to inland lakes and ponds, or to
slowly-moving streams. The fresh waters, from the smallest pools to the
largest lakes, often swarm with them, as do those streams which flow so
slowly that the creatures can obtain occasional shelter among vegetation
along the sides and bottom without being swept away, while even rivers of
considerable swiftness contain some Cladocera. Several Branchiopods are
found in the brackish waters of estuaries, and some occur in lakes and
pools so salt that no other Crustacea, and few other animals of any kind,
can live in them. The great majority swim about with the back
downwards, collecting food in the ventral groove between their post-oral
limbs, and driving it forwards, towards the mouth, by movements of the
gnathobases (p. 10). The food collected in this way consists largely of
suspended organic mud, together with Diatoms and other Algae, and
Infusoria; the larger kinds, however, are capable of gnawing objects of
considerable size, Apus being said to nibble the softer insect larvae, and
even tadpoles. Many Cladocera (e.g. Daphnia, Simocephalus) may be
seen to sink to the bottom of an aquarium, with the ventral surface
downwards, and to collect mud, or even to devour the dead bodies of their
fellows, while Leptodora is said to feed upon living Copepods, which it
catches by means of its antennae.
The Branchiopoda fall naturally into two Sub-orders, the Phyllopoda
including a series of long-bodied forms, with at least ten pairs of post-
cephalic limbs, and the Cladocera with shorter bodies and not more
than six pairs of post-cephalic limbs.

Sub-Order 1. Phyllopoda.

The Phyllopoda include a series of genera which differ greatly in

appearance, owing to differences in the development of the carapace,
which are curiously correlated with differences in the position of the eyes.
Except in these points, the three families which the sub-order contains
are so much alike that they may conveniently be described together.
In the Branchipodidae the carapace is practically absent, being
represented only by the slight backward projection on each side of the
head which contains the kidney (Fig. 2); the paired eyes are supported on
mobile stalks, and project freely, one on either side of the head.
In the Apodidae[15] the head is broad and depressed, the ventral side
being nearly flat, the dorsal surface convex; the hinder margin of the head
is indicated dorsally by a transverse cervical ridge, bounded by two
grooves, behind which the carapace projects backwards as a great shield,
covering at least half the body, but attached only to the back of the head.
In Lepidurus productus the head and carapace together form an oval
expansion, deeply emarginate at the hinder, narrower end, the sides of
the emargination being toothed. The carapace has a strong median keel.
The kidneys project into the space between the folds of skin which form
the carapace, and their coils can be seen on each side, the terminal part of
each kidney-tube entering the head to open at the base of the second
maxilla. In all Branchiopoda with a well-developed carapace the kidney is
enclosed in it in this way, whence the older anatomists speak of it as the
“shell-gland.”
 Fig. 2.—Chirocephalus diaphanus, female, × 5, Sussex. D.O, Dorsal
organ; H, heart; Ov, ovary; U, uterus; V, external generative opening.

Associated with the development of the carapace, in this and in the next
family, is a remarkable condition of the lateral eyes, which are sessile on
the dorsal surface of the head, and near the middle line, the median eye
being slightly in front of them. During embryonic life a fold of skin grows
over all three eyes, so that a chamber is formed over them, which
communicates with the exterior by a small pore in front.
In the Limnadiidae the body is laterally compressed, and the carapace
is so large that at least the post-cephalic part of the body, and generally
the head also, can be enclosed within it.
In Limnetis (Fig. 3) the dorsal
surface of the head is bent
downwards and is much
compressed, the carapace being
attached to it only for a short
distance near the dorsal middle line.
The sides of the carapace are bent
downwards, and their margins can
be pulled together by a transverse
adductor muscle, so that the whole
structure forms an ovoid or
spheroidal case, from which the
head projects in front, while the rest
Fig. 3.—Limnetis brachyura, × 15. (After
of the body is entirely contained G. O. Sars.)
within it. When the adductor muscle
is relaxed the edges of the carapace
gape slightly, like the valves of a Lamellibranch shell, and food-particles
are drawn through the opening thus formed into the ventral groove by the
movements of the thoracic feet, locomotion being chiefly effected by the
rowing action of the second antennae, as in the Cladocera, to which all the
Limnadiidae present strong resemblances in their method of locomotion,
in the condition of the carapace, and in the form of the telson.
In Limnadia and Estheria the carapace projects not only backwards
from the point of attachment to the head, but also forwards, so that the
head can be enclosed by it, together with the rest of the body.
In all these genera the carapace is flexible along the middle dorsal line;
in Estheria especially the softening of the dorsal cuticle goes so far that a
definite hinge-line is formed, and this, together with the deposition of the
lateral cuticle in lines concentrically arranged round a projecting umbo,
gives the carapace a strong superficial likeness to a Lamellibranch shell,
for which it is said to be frequently mistaken by collectors.
The eyes of the Limnadiidae are enclosed in a chamber formed by a
growth of skin over them, as in Apodidae, but the pore by which this
chamber communicates with the exterior is even more minute than in
Apus. The paired eyes are so close together that they may touch
(Limnadia, Estheria) or fuse (Limnetis); they are farther back than in the
Apodidae, while the ventral curvature of the head causes the median eye
to lie below them. In all these points the eyes of the Limnadiidae are
intermediate between those of Apus and those of the Cladocera.
Dorsal Organ.—A structure very characteristic of adult Phyllopods is
the “dorsal organ” (Figs. 2, 5, D.O), whose function is in many cases
obscure. It is always a patch of modified cephalic ectoderm, supplied by a
nerve from the anterior ventral lobe of the brain on each side; but its
characters, and apparent function, differ in different forms. In the
Branchipodidae the dorsal organ is a circular patch, far forward on the
surface of the head (Figs. 2, 5, D.O). Its cells are arranged in groups,
which remind one of the retinulae in a compound eye; each cell contains a
solid concretion, and the concretions of a group may be so placed as to
look like a badly-formed rhabdom. Claus,[16] who first called attention to
this structure in the Branchipodidae, regarded it as a sense-organ. In
Apodidae the dorsal organ is an oval patch of columnar ectoderm,
immediately behind the eyes; it is slightly raised above the surrounding
skin, and is covered by a very delicate cuticle (with an opening to the
exterior?), and below it is a mass of connective tissue permeated by blood;
Bernard has suggested that it is an excretory organ.
Most Limnadiidae resemble the Cladocera in the possession of a
“dorsal organ” quite distinct from the above; in Limnetis and Estheria it
has the form of a small pit, lined by an apparently glandular ectoderm,
and this is its condition in many Cladocera; in Limnadia lenticularis it is
a patch of glandular epithelium on a raised papilla. Limnadia has been
observed to anchor itself to foreign objects by pressing its dorsal organ
against them, and many Cladocera do the same thing; Sida crystallina,
for example, will remain for hours attached by its dorsal organ to a
waterweed or to the side of an aquarium. Structures resembling a dorsal
organ occur in the larvae of many other Crustacea, but the presence of
this organ in the adult is confined to Branchiopods, and indeed in many
Cladocera it disappears before maturity. It is certain that the sensory and
adhesive types of dorsal organ are not homologous, especially as
rudimentary sense-organs may exist on the head of Cladocera together
with the adhesive organ.
The telson differs considerably in the different genera. In the
Branchipodidae[17] the anus opens directly backwards; and the telson
carries two flattened backwardly directed plates, one on each side of the
anus, the margins of each plate being fringed with plumose setae. In
Artemia the anal plates are rarely as large as in Branchipus, and never
have their margins completely fringed with setae; in A. salina from
Western Europe, and in A. fertilis (Fig. 4, A) from the Great Salt Lake of
Utah, there is a variable number of setae round the apical half of each
lobe, but in specimens of A. salina from Western Siberia the number of
setae may be very small, or they may be absent; in the closely allied A.
urmiana from Persia the anal lobes are well developed in the male, each
lobe bearing a single terminal hair, but they are altogether absent in the
female. Schmankewitch and Bateson have shown that there is a certain
relation between the salinity of the water in which Artemia salina occurs
and the condition of the anal lobes, specimens from denser waters having
on the whole fewer setae; the relation is, however, evidently very complex,
and further evidence is wanted before any more definite statements can
be made.
 Fig. 4.—A, Ventral view of the anal region in Artemia fertilis, from the
Great Salt Lake; B, ventral view of the telson and neighbouring parts of
Lepidurus productus; C, side view of the telson and left anal lobe of
Estheria (sp.?).

In the Apodidae the anal lobes have the form of two-jointed cirri, often
of considerable length; in Apus the anus is terminal, but in Lepidurus
(Fig. 4, B) the dorsal part of the telson is prolonged backwards, so as to
form a plate, on the ventral face of which the anus opens, much as in the
Malacostraca.
In the Limnadiidae (Fig. 4, C) the telson is laterally compressed and
produced, on each side of the anus, into a flattened, upwardly curved
process, sharply pointed posteriorly, and often serrate; the anal lobes are
represented by two stout curved spines, while in place of the dorsal
prolongation of Lepidurus we find two long plumose setae above the
anus. In the characters of the telson and anal lobes, as in those of the
head, the Limnadiidae approximate to the Cladocera. In Limnetis
brachyura the ventral face of the telson is produced into a plate
projecting backwards below the anus, in a manner which has no exact
parallel among other Crustacea.
The appendages of the Phyllopoda are fairly uniform in character,
except those affected by the sexual dimorphism, which is usually great.
 Fig. 5.—Chirocephalus diaphanus, male. Side view of head, showing
the large second antenna, A2, with its appendage Ap, above which is
seen the filiform first antenna; D.O, dorsal organ; E1, median eye.

Of the cephalic appendages, the first antennae are generally small, and
are never biramous; in Branchipus and its allies they are simple unjointed
rods, in some species of Artemia they are three-jointed, in Apus they are
feebly divided into two joints, while in Estheria they are many-jointed.
The second antennae are the principal organs of locomotion in the
Limnadiidae, where they are large and biramous; in all other Phyllopoda
they are uniramous in the female, being either unjointed triangular plates
as in Chirocephalus (Fig. 2), or minute vestigial filaments as in Apus, in
which genus Zaddach, Huxley, and Claus have all failed to find any trace
of a second antenna in some females. In the male Branchipodidae the
second antennae are modified to form claspers, by which the female is
seized, the various degrees of complication which these claspers exhibit
affording convenient generic characters. In Branchinecta each second
antenna is a thick, three-jointed rod, the last joint forming a claw, while
the second joint is serrate on its inner margin; in Branchipus the base is
much thickened, and bears on its inner side a large filament (perhaps
represented by the proximal tubercle of Branchinecta and Artemia),
which looks like an extra antenna. In Streptocephalus the terminal joint
of the antenna is bifid, and there is a basal filament like that of
Branchipus; in Chirocephalus
diaphanus (Figs. 5, 6) the main
branch of the antenna consists of
two large joints, the terminal joint
being a strong claw with a serrated
process at its base, while the
proximal joint bears two
appendages on its inner side; one of
these is a small, subconical tubercle,
the second is more complicated,
consisting of a main stem and five
outgrowths. The main stem is
many-jointed and flexible, its basal
joint being longer than the others,
and bearing on its outer side a large,
triangular, membranous appendage,
and four soft cylindrical
appendages, the main stem and its
appendages being beset with
curious tubercles, ending in short
spines, whose structure is not
understood. Except during the act of
copulation this remarkable Fig. 6.—Chirocephalus diaphanus.
Second antenna of male, uncoiled.
apparatus is coiled on the inner side
of the antennary claw, the jointed
stem being so coiled that it is often compared to the coiled proboscis of a
butterfly, and the triangular membrane folded like a fan beside it, so that
much of the organ is concealed, and the general appearance of the head is
that shown in Fig. 5. During copulation, the whole structure is widely
extended.
The males of Artemia (Fig. 7) have the second antenna two-jointed, the
basal joint bearing an inner tubercle, the terminal joint being flattened
and bluntly pointed, its outer margin provided with a membranous
outgrowth. In A. fertilis the breadth of the second joint varies greatly, the
narrower forms presenting a certain remote resemblance to
Branchinecta. In the males of Polyartemia the second antennae have a
remarkable branched form not easily comparable with that found in other
Branchipodidae.
The cephalic jaws are fairly uniform throughout the order. The
mandibles have an undivided molar surface, and no palp; the first maxilla
is very generally a triangular plate, with a setose biting edge; mandibles
 and maxillae are covered by the
labrum. The second maxilla
generally lies outside the chamber
formed by the labrum, and is a
simple oval plate, with or without a
special process for the duct of the
kidney.
The thoracic limbs, in front of the
genital segments, are not as a rule
differentiated into anterior
Fig. 7.—Artemia fertilis. Front view of the maxillipedes and posterior
head of a male, showing the large second locomotive appendages, as in higher
antennae, A.2; A.1, first antennae. forms; we have seen, however, that
all these limbs take part in the
prehension of food, and except in
the Limnadiidae they all assist in locomotion. One of the middle thoracic
legs of Artemia (Fig. 8, A) has a flattened stem, with seven processes on
its inner, and two on its outer margin. The gnathobase (gn) is large, and
fringed with long plumose setae, each of which is jointed; this is followed
by four smaller “endites” (or processes on the median side), and then by
two larger ones, the terminal endite (the sixth, excluding the gnathobase)
being very mobile and attached to the main stem by a definite joint. On
the outer side are two processes; a proximal “bract,” a flat plate with
crenate edges, partly divided by a constriction into two, and a distal
process, cylindrical and vascular, called by Sars and others the
“epipodite.” In other Branchipodidae we have essentially the same
condition, except that the fifth endite often becomes much larger than in
Artemia, throwing the terminal endite well over to the outer edge of the
limb; such a shift as this, continued farther, might well lead to the
condition found in the Limnadiidae, or Apodidae, where the lobe which
seems to represent the terminal endite of Artemia is entirely on the outer
border of the limb, forming what most writers have called the exopodite
(Lankester’s “flabellum”).[18] In the two last-named families the basal
exite or bract of the Branchipodidae does not appear to be represented.
 Fig. 8.—A, Thoracic limb of Chirocephalus diaphanus; B, prehensile
thoracic limb of male Estheria. gn, Gnathobase; 1–6, the more distal
endites.

The limbs of the Apodidae are remarkable in two ways; those in front of
the genital opening (very constantly ten pairs) are not so nearly alike as in
most genera of the sub-order, the first two pairs especially having the axis
definitely jointed, while the endites are elongated and antenniform;
further, while the first eleven segments bear each a single pair of limbs, as
is usual among Crustacea, many of the post-genital segments bear several
pairs; thus in Apus cancriformis there are thirty-two post-cephalic
segments in front of the telson, the first eleven having each one pair of
limbs, while the next seventeen have fifty-two pairs between them, the
last four segments having none.
In all the Phyllopoda some of the post-cephalic limbs are modified for
reproductive purposes; in the Branchipodidae the last two pairs (the 12th
and 13th generally, the 20th and 21st in Polyartemia) are so modified in
both sexes. In the female these appendages fuse at an early period of
larval life, and surround the median opening of the generative duct (Fig.
2); in the male the two pairs also fuse, but traces of the limbs are left as
eversible processes round the paired openings of the vasa deferentia.
 In the other families, one or more limbs of the female are adapted for
carrying or supporting the eggs. In the Apodidae the appendages of the
eleventh segment have the exopodite in the form of a rounded,
watchglass-shaped plate, fitting over a similarly shaped process of the
axis of the limb, so that a lens-shaped box is formed, into which the eggs
pass from the oviduct. In Limnadiidae the eggs are carried in masses
between the body and the carapace, and are kept in position by special
elongations of the exopodites of two or three legs, either those near the
middle of the thorax (Estheria, Limnadia), or at its posterior end
(Limnetis). In female Limnetis the last thoracic segments bear two
remarkable lateral plates, which apparently also help to support the eggs.
In the male Limnadiidae, the first (Limnetis) or the first two thoracic feet
(Limnadia, Estheria) are prehensile (Fig. 8, B).
Alimentary Canal.—The mouth of the Phyllopoda is overhung by the
large labrum, so that a kind of atrium is formed, outside the mouth itself,
in which mastication is performed; numerous unicellular glands, opening
on the oral face of the labrum, pour their secretion into the atrial
chamber, and may be called salivary, though the nature of their secretion
is not known. The mouth has commonly two swollen and setose lips,
running longitudinally forwards from the bases of the first maxillae, and
often wrapping round the blades of the mandibles. It leads into a vertical
oesophagus, which opens into a small globular stomach, lying entirely
within the head; the terminal part of the oesophagus is slightly
invaginated into the stomach, so that a valvular ring is formed at the
junction of the two. The stomach opens widely behind into a straight
intestine, which runs backwards to about the level of the telson, where it
joins a short rectum, leading to the terminal or ventral anus. The stomach
and intestine are lined by a columnar epithelium, and covered by a thin
network of circularly arranged muscle-fibres; the rectum has a flatter
epithelium, and radial muscles pass from it to the body-wall, so that it can
be dilated. The only special digestive glands are two branched glandular
tubes, situated entirely within the head, which open into the stomach by
large ducts, one on each side. In Chirocephalus the gastric glands are
fairly small and simple; in the Apodidae their branches are more complex
and form a considerable mass, filling all that portion of the head which is
not occupied by the nervous system and the muscles. Backwardly directed
gastric glands, like those of the higher Crustacea, are not found in
Branchiopods; both forms occur together in the genus Nebalia, but with
this exception the forwardly-directed glands are peculiar to
Branchiopods.
 Heart.—In Branchipus and its allies, and in Artemia, the heart
extends from the first thoracic segment to the penultimate segment of the
body, and is provided with eighteen pairs of lateral openings, one pair in
every segment through which it passes except the last; it is widely open at
its hinder end, and is prolonged in front for a short distance as a cephalic
aorta, the rest of the blood-spaces being lacunar.
In most, at least, of the other Branchiopods, the heart is closed behind
and is shortened; in Apus and Lepidurus it only extends through the first
eleven post-cephalic segments, while in the Limnadiidae it is shorter still,
the heart of Limnetis passing through four segments only. In all cases
there is a pair of lateral openings in every segment traversed by the heart.
The blood of the Branchipodidae and Apodidae contains dissolved
haemoglobin, the quantity present being so small as to give but a faint
colour to the blood in Branchipus, while Artemia has rather more, and
the blood of Apus is very red. The only other Crustacea in which the blood
contains haemoglobin are the Copepods of the genus Lernanthropus,[19]
so that the appearance of this substance is as irregular and inexplicable in
Crustacea as in Chaetopods and Molluscs.
The nervous system of Branchipus may be described as an
illustration of the condition prevailing in the group. The brain consists of
two closely united ganglia, in each of which three main regions may be
distinguished; a ventral anterior lobe, a dorsal anterior lobe, and a
posterior lobe. The ventral anterior lobes give off nerves to the median
eye, to the dorsal organ, and to a pair of curious sense-organs,
comparable with the larval sense-knobs of many higher forms, situated
one on each side of the median eye; in late larvae Claus describes the
terminal apparatus of each frontal sense-organ as a single large
hypodermic cell; W. K. Spencer[20] has lately described several terminal
cells, containing peculiar chitinous bodies, in the adult. The homologous
sense-organs of Limnetis are apparently olfactory. The dorsal anterior
lobes give off the large nerves to the lateral eyes, while the posterior lobes
supply the first antennae. The oesophageal connectives have a coating of
ganglion-cells, and some of these form the ganglion of the second
antenna, the nerve to this appendage leaving the connective just behind
the brain. The post-oral nerve-cords are widely separate, each of them
dilating into a ganglion opposite every appendage, the two ganglia being
connected by two transverse commissures. The ganglia of the three
cephalic jaws, so often fused in the higher Crustacea, are here perfectly
distinct. Closely connected with each thoracic ganglion is a remarkable
unicellular gland, opening to the exterior near the middle ventral line; it
is conceivable that these cells may be properly compared with the larval
nephridia of a Chaetopod,[21] but no evidence in support of such a
comparison has yet been adduced.
Behind the genital segments, where there are no limbs, the nerve-cords
run backwards without dilating into segmental ganglia, except in the
anterior two abdominal segments where small ganglionic enlargements
occur. In Apodidae, on the other hand, those segments which carry more
than one pair of appendages have as many pairs of ganglia, united by
transverse commissures, as they have limbs.
A stomatogastric nervous system exists in Apus, where a nerve arises
on each side from the first post-oral commissure, and runs forward to join
its fellow of the opposite side on the anterior wall of the oesophagus.
From the loop so formed a larger median and a series of smaller lateral
nerves pass to the wall of the alimentary canal. A second nerve to the
oesophagus is given off from the mandibular ganglion of each side.
Reproductive Organs.—In Chirocephalus the ovaries (Fig. 2, Ov)
are hollow epithelial tubes, lying one on each side of the alimentary canal,
and extending from the sixth abdominal segment forwards to the level of
the genital opening; at this point the two ovaries are continuous with
ducts, which bend sharply downwards and open into the single uterus
contained within the projecting egg-pouch and opening to the exterior at
the apex of that organ. Short diverticula of the walls of the uterus receive
the ducts of groups of unicellular glands, the bodies of which contain a
peculiar opaque secretion, said to form the eggshells. In Apodidae the
ovaries are similar in structure, but they are much larger and branch in a
complex manner, while each ovary opens to the exterior independently of
the other in the eleventh post-cephalic segment; nothing like the median
uterus of the Branchipodidae being formed. The epithelium of the ovarian
tubes proliferates, and groups of cells are formed; one becoming an ovum,
the others being nutrient cells like those which will be more fully
described in the Cladocera.
In Chirocephalus the testes are tubes similar in shape and position to
the ovaries, each communicating in front with a short vas deferens, which
dilates into a vesicula seminalis on its way to the eversible penis; an
essentially similar arrangement is found in all Branchipodidae, but in
Apodidae and Limnadiidae there is no penis.
All the Branchiopoda are dioecious,[22] and many are parthenogenetic.
Among Branchipodidae Artemia is the only genus known to be
parthenogenetic, but parthenogenesis is common in all Apodidae, while
the males of several species of Limnadia are still unknown, although the
females are sometimes exceedingly common. In Artemia, generations in
which the males are about as numerous as the females seem to alternate
fairly quickly with others which contain only parthenogenetic females; in
Apus males are rarely abundant, and often absent for long periods; during
five consecutive years von Siebold failed to discover a male in a locality in
Bavaria, though he examined many thousands of individuals; near
Breslau he found on one occasion about 11 per cent of males (114 in 1026),
but in a subsequent year he found less than 1 per cent; the greatest
recorded percentage of males is that observed by Lubbock in 1863, when
he found 33 males among 72 individuals taken near Rouen.
The eggs of most genera can resist prolonged periods of desiccation,
and indeed it seems necessary for the development of many species that
the eggs should be first dried and afterwards placed in water. Many eggs
(e.g. of Chirocephalus diaphanus and Branchipus stagnalis) float when
placed in water after desiccation, the development taking place at the
surface of the water.
Habitat.—All the Phyllopoda, except Artemia, are confined to
stagnant shallow waters, especially to such ponds as are formed during
spring rains, and dry up during the summer. In waters of this kind the
species of Branchipus, Apus, etc., develop rapidly, and produce great
numbers of eggs, which are left in the dried mud at the bottom after
evaporation of the water, where they remain quiescent until a fresh rainy
season. The mud from the beds of such temporary pools often contains
large numbers of eggs, which may be carried by wind, on the legs of birds,
and by other means, to considerable distances. Many exotic species have
been made known to European naturalists by their power of hatching out
when mud brought home by travellers is placed in water. The water of
stagnant pools quickly dissolves a certain quantity of solid matter from
the soil, and often receives dissolved solids through surface drainage from
the neighbouring land; such salts may remain as the water evaporates, so
that the water which remains after evaporation has proceeded for some
time may be very sensibly denser than that in which the Branchiopods
were hatched; these creatures must therefore be able to endure a
considerable increase in the salinity of the surrounding waters during the
course of their lives. My friend Mr. W. W. Fisher points out that the
plants present in such a pond would often precipitate the carbonate of
lime, so that this might be removed as evaporation went on, but that
chlorides would probably remain in solution; from analyses which Mr.
Fisher has been kind enough to make for me, it is seen that this happened
in a small aquarium in my laboratory, in which Chirocephalus diaphanus
lived for four months. In April, mud from the dry bed of a pond, known to
contain eggs of Chirocephalus, was placed in this aquarium in Oxford,
and water was added from the tap. Oxford tap-water contains about 0·3
grm. salts per litre, the chlorine being equivalent to 0·023 grm. NaCl.
Water was added from time to time during May and June, but in July
evaporation was allowed to proceed unchecked. At the end of July there
was about half the original volume of water, the Chirocephalus being still
active; the residue contained 0·96 grm. dissolved solids per litre, with
chlorine equal to 0·19 grm. NaCl, so that the percentage of chlorides was
about eight times the initial percentage, but there were only three and a
fifth times the original amount of total solid matter in solution, the
carbonate of lime having precipitated as a visible film.
Some species of Branchipus (e.g. B. spinosus, M. Edw.) and of Estheria
(E. macgillivrayi, Baird, E. gubernator, Klutzinger) occur in salt pools,
but Artemia flourishes in waters beside whose salinity that endured by
any other Branchiopod is insignificant. In the South of Europe, Artemia
salina may be found in swarms, as it used to be found in Dorsetshire, in
the shallow brine-pans from which salt is commercially prepared; Rathke
quotes an analysis showing that a pool in the Crimea contained living
Artemia when the salts in solution were 271 grms. per litre, and the water
was said to have the colour and consistency of beer.
The behaviour of the animals in the water differs a little; in normal
feeding all the species swim with the back downwards, as has already
been said; the Branchipodidae rarely settle on the ground, or on foreign
objects, but the Apodidae occasionally wriggle along the bottom on their
ventral surface, and Estheria burrows in mud.
The greater number of species are found in pools in flat, low-lying
regions, and many appear to be especially abundant near the sea; Apus
cancriformis has, however, been found in Armenia at 10,000 feet above
sea level.
Wells and underground waters do not generally contain Phyllopods;
but a species of Branchipus and one of Limnetis, both blind, have been
described from the caves of Carniola.
One of the many puzzles presented by these creatures is the erratic way
in which they are scattered through the regions they inhabit; a single
small pond, a few yards or less in diameter, may be the only place within
many miles in which a given species can be found; in this pond it may,
however, appear regularly season after season for some time, and then
suddenly vanish.
Geographically, the Phyllopoda are cosmopolitan, representatives of
every family and of some genera (e.g. Streptocephalus, Lepidurus,
Estheria) being found in every one of the great zoological regions, though
a few aberrant genera are of limited range, thus Polyartemia is known
only from the northern Palaearctic and Nearctic regions,
Thamnocephalus only from the Central United States. The genus Artemia
is not at present known in Australia.[23] The only recorded British species
are Chirocephalus diaphanus, Artemia salina, and Apus cancriformis,[24]
but other continental islands, for example the West Indian group, are
better supplied. The distribution of the species is very imperfectly known,
but on the whole every main zoological region seems to have its own
peculiar species, which do not pass beyond its boundaries. Branchinecta
paludosa and Lepidurus glacialis are circumpolar, both occurring in
Norway, in Lapland, in Greenland, and in Arctic North America; but with
these exceptions the Palaearctic and Nearctic species seem to be distinct.
The European species Apus cancriformis occurs in Algiers, but the
relations between the species of Northern Africa as a whole and those of
Southern Europe on the one hand, or of Central and Southern Africa on
the other, have yet to be worked out.
The soft-bodied Branchipodidae are not known in the fossil condition;
[25]
an Apus, closely related to the modern A. cancriformis, has been
found in the Trias, but the most numerous remains have been left, as
might be expected, by the hard-shelled Limnadiidae; carapaces, closely
resembling those of the modern Estheria, are known in beds of all ages
from the Devonian period to recent times; these carapaces are in several
cases associated with fossils of an apparently marine type. None of the
fossil species differ in any important characters from those now living, so
that the Phyllopoda have existed in practically their present form for an
enormously long period; this fact, and the evidence that species of
existing genera were at one time marine, explain the wide distribution of
animals at present restricted to a remarkably limited range of
environmental conditions.

Summary of the Characters of the Genera.

Sub-Order Phyllopoda.—Branchiopoda with an elongated body,

provided with at least ten pairs of post-cephalic limbs, the heart
extending through four or more thoracic segments, and having at
least four pairs of ostia.
Fam. 1. Branchipodidae.[26]—Carapace rudimentary, eyes stalked;
the second antennae flat and unjointed in the female, jointed and
prehensile in the male; female generative opening single; telson not
laterally compressed, bearing two flattened lobes, or none. The heart
extending through the thorax and the greater part of the abdomen.
A. Eleven pairs of praegenital ambulatory limbs.
a. Abdomen of six well-formed segments and a telson; anal
lobes well formed, their margins setose.
Branchinecta, Verrill—Second antennae of ♂ without
lateral appendages; ovisac of ♀ elongated. B. paludosa,
O. F. Müll.—Circumpolar.
Branchiopodopsis, G. O. Sars[27]—Second antennae of ♂ as
in Branchinecta; ovisac of ♀ short. B. hodgsoni, G. O.
Sars—Cape of Good Hope.
Branchipus, Schaeffer—Second antennae of ♂ with simple
internal filamentous appendage. B. stagnalis, Linn.—
Central Europe.
Streptocephalus, Baird—Second antennae of ♂ 3–jointed,
the last joint bifid; an external filamentous appendage. S.
torvicornis, Wagn., Poland.
Chirocephalus, Prévost—Second antennae of ♂ 3–jointed,
with a jointed internal appendage, which bears secondary
processes, four cylindrical and one lamellar. C.
diaphanus, Prévost (Fig. 2, p. 20).—Britain, Central
Europe.
b. Abdominal segments five or fewer, and a telson. Anal lobes
small or 0, sparsely or not at all setose.
Artemia, Leach—Second antennae of ♂ without
filamentous appendage, 2–jointed, the second joint
lamellar. A. salina, Linn.—Brine pools of the Palaearctic
region.
c. Hinder abdominal segments united with telson to form a fin;
anal lobes absent.
Thamnocephalus, Packard—Head with a branched median
process of unknown nature. Only species T. platyurus,
Packard—Kansas, U.S.A.
B. Nineteen pairs of praegenital ambulatory limbs.
 Polyartemia, Fischer—Second antennae of ♂ forcipate;
ovisac of ♀ very short. Only species P. forcipata, Fisch.
Fam. 2. Apodidae.[28]—Carapace well developed as a depressed
shield, covering at least half the body. Eyes sessile, covered; no male
clasping organs; anal lobes long, jointed cirri.
Apus, Scopoli—Telson not produced backwards over the
anus; endites of first thoracic limb very long. A.
cancriformis, Schaeffer—Britain, Europe, Algiers, Tunis.
A. australiensis, Central Australia.
Lepidurus, Leach—Telson produced backwards to form a
plate above the anus; endites of first thoracic limb short.
L. productus, Bosc.—Central Europe. L. viridis, Southern
Australia, New Zealand, L. patagonicus, Bergh,
Argentines.
Fam. 3. Limnadiidae.—Body compressed; carapace in the form
of a bivalve shell, the two halves capable of adduction by means of a
strong transverse muscle; second antennae biramous, alike in both
sexes; in the male, the first or the first and second thoracic limbs
prehensile; telson laterally compressed.
A. Only the first thoracic limbs prehensile in the male; the carapace
spheroidal, without lines of growth; head not included within the
carapace-chamber.
Limnetis, Lovén—Compound eyes fused; anal spines
absent; ambulatory limbs 10–12. L. brachyura, O. F.
Müll (Fig. 3, p. 21).—Norway, Central Europe.
B. The first and second thoracic limbs prehensile in the male;
carapace distinctly bivalve, enclosing the head, with concentric
lines of growth round a more or less prominent umbo.
Eulimnadia, Packard—Carapace narrowly ovate, with few
(4–5) lines of growth. E. mauritani, Guérin—Mauritius.
E. texana, Packard—Texas, Kansas.
Limnadia, Brongniart—Carapace broadly ovate, with
numerous lines of growth, without distinct umbones; L.
lenticularis, Linn.—Northern and Central Europe.
Estheria, Rüppell—Carapace with well-marked umbones
and numerous lines of growth, oval; E. tetraceros,
Kryneki—Central Europe.