1 Chapter One

I don't like it here. It smells of sweat and cheap beer. Sasha's four tables over talking to this guy who's ten years older than us. I don't get why she likes places like this. It's disgusting. We do this every weekend. Sasha has a part-time job as a secretary at a local business and I have classes all week, so it's impossible to meet during the week. Only I don't get why she insists on meeting here when she knows I hate this place.

I glance at my phone. Three missed calls and it's only quarter past ten. I can't do this anymore. That's it; I need to go home.

I walk over to Sasha's table and the guy's glaring at me for interrupting them. I glare back and tap Sasha's arm. She looks back, a wide smile etched on her face. Even in a smelly bar like this one, she's gorgeous. Her eyes are blue like the ocean and her blonde hair cascades down her back. She's the opposite of me. My hair is dark brown and short, and my eyes are dark, too. Plain, too plain. I hate it here.

She raises a brow at me. "Leaving?"

I smile sheepishly. We do this every weekend. I always leave early. It's just that I hate this place and Garrett's been calling me non-stop and I haven't answered him yet. He hates it when I stay out late. Sasha hates that about him, but I don't mind. He's protective. "Yeah. I'm just tired. I had a long day."

She gives me a knowing look. "It's Garrett, right? You know you aren't his property, Mia."

"I'm not," I say quickly. Too quickly. "It's just, he's alone today and I promised I'd get back early. I'm sorry." That's not true. I told him I'd sleep over at Sasha's place, but he's been sending me texts and calling me non-stop so I have to leave. He usually never stops until I get home.

She stands. She's a full head taller than me, and I'm in heels and she isn't. "I get it." She hugs me. "We'll meet again next weekend. I'll call you tomorrow. Tell that asshole I said thanks a lot for ruining my night with my best friend. I hope his pillow is warm on both sides."

I smile and suppress a laugh as I make my way outside. The air is cool and I can't get enough of it. It was so hot in there. The moon is full in the sky, lighting up the night sky. I unlock my car and slide in my seat. I love this car. Garrett bought it for me last month for my birthday and I can't get enough of it. I'm obsessed, I know. It was sweet of him since we've only been together for eight months. We met last year in June. I fell in love with him on the spot. His hair is brown and wavy, and his eyes are dark blue. I can't get over the shape of his lips. His smile lights up my entire universe. We moved in together in January and I think he's planning to propose, but I'm not too sure. I haven't met his parents yet, but he promised that I will soon. They're just busy and not in the country right now.

Sasha hates him, for some reason. They just don't get along. She and I have been friends for three years. We met when she moved her senior year from California. She was instantly popular. She's just likable. She shines wherever she goes, and men, and women, orbit around her. She just has this effect on people. The only person she doesn't like is Garrett, and I honestly don't know why.

I press the key to the ignition and the car roars to life. I strap myself in and I back out of the parking lot. I can't wait to get home. He'll be glad I didn't sleep at Sasha's. He doesn't trust her.

My phone rings. I stick my hand in my handbag and fish around for it, keeping my eyes on the road the entire time. I can't find it. I look away for a spot second and I hit something. I see a flash of black fur and I hit the brakes. My heart is pounding so fast right now. I hit something. I can't believe it. I look over my steering wheel and I don't see a thing. The phone just keeps ringing and ringing and I think of Garrett. He'll help me figure this out. I don't know what the hell to do.

I manage to find my phone and I answer his call. "Mia. I've been calling and calling you all night—"

"Okay, baby, I know. I know and I'm so sorry I didn't call you back. I'm heading home right now and oh my God, I hit something. I think it's a dog." I start to open my door. "I didn't see it. It appeared out of nowhere." The night air hits me and I see blood on the bumper. I see a hand. A person's hand. I see a bloodied face. A man?

"Out of nowhere? A dog? Listen to me. Stay in the car. Don't move. Where are you?"

I scream. It is a man. I hit a person, not an animal. Why did I ever think it was a dog? Oh my God. I killed him. He's dead.

He's shouting through the phone. "What is it? Mia what's wrong? Are you in the car? Stay in the car! Don't get out, are you listening to me?"

"It's a man. Oh my God! I killed a person! I don't know what to do." I turn my back to the scene. "He isn't breathing. I don't know what to do!" My hands start shaking badly. I can barely hold the phone. He's still shouting in my ear and at this point, I can't hear him. The blood. There's so much blood. Where'd he come from? I only looked away for a second.

"Get in the car!" He's shouting. "Go, now!"

I do as he says and when I look up, I scream again. He's standing in front of my car. He's looking right at me. There's blood running down his face and his naked chest. Why doesn't he have a shirt on? No, that's not important. I get back out of the car. I look at him and I realize he's naked. Completely naked. I can't believe this. I hit a lunatic. I put my hands up. "Mister, I'm so sorry. I didn't see you. Are you okay? I can take you to the hospital. It's just around the corner, I think."

He doesn't answer me. He cocks his head to the side and just stares at me. I don't think he knows he's bleeding to death. Why is he naked? What was he doing in the middle of the road, in the middle of the night, without any clothes on? I'm scared now. Real scared. Maybe I shouldn't have gotten out of the car. Either way, it's too late for that now.

"Mister?"

Suddenly, he rushes towards me. I drop my phone and put my hands up. He grabs my arms and gets real close to me. I can smell the sweat on his skin. I can feel his...thing on my belly. I didn't even realize he was this tall until now. He puts his face to my neck and he starts smelling me. Inhaling my scent. I step back and he follows me. I try to push him away, but his grip tightens on my arms. "Stop. Please, stop. Stop doing that!"

He keeps smelling me. I don't know what to think at this point. His blood is staining my dress and he isn't listening. Not a single car drives by. The houses around me are dark and there's not a single person outside. It's Friday and there's not a single person walking by. I can't believe my bad luck. Maybe if I scream, someone will come out and help me. But if I scream, he might hurt me.

I manage to pull one arm away from his grip and I shove him back. He doesn't budge, but that gets his attention. I can't help but notice that his eyes are green. They're iridescent. I step away from him, and thankfully he doesn't follow me. He lets go of my other arm. I try not to look at his penis as I speak. "You're bleeding. I should call an ambulance, or let me take you to a hospital."

"No hospital." It's the first thing he's said and his voice is deep and throaty.

"A clinic, then. I'm sure there's one around—"

"No clinic."

I gape at him. "But you're bleeding. I'm not sure you've noticed. You hit your head. You need medical assistance, urgently."

He touches his forehead and his fingers come back coated in blood. He doesn't even wince or look shocked at the blood staining his fingers. He hit his head harder than I thought. I spot my phone right next to his feet, but I'm afraid of getting close to him. "I should call an ambulance." He follows my eyes and looks down at my phone next to his foot. He bends and picks it up. Does he even know he's naked? I hear Garrett's voice. Garrett. I completely forgot about him. He's still yelling and I wonder if he heard the whole thing.

"That's my boyfriend," I tell him. He looks at me and his eyes harden. I stay rooted to the spot, too scared to move, but I need my phone. I need to tell Garrett exactly where I am and I need to call the police. "Could you give me my phone, please?"

He smashes my phone in his hand. Smashes. I don't know how he does it. The cracked screen cuts into his hand and he's bleeding all over again. I gulp and I feel the scream building up in my throat. I'm screwed. I'm in the middle of the road with a naked stranger I just hit with my car and he just smashed my phone in his hand. There's no one around to help me and I don't know where to run.

He takes a step towards me and me back away. I can't run in these heels. But I can't take them off, either. I don't want to take my eyes off him for a second. "Why did you do that? You broke my phone. How am I supposed to call for help?" I'm convinced that he's kind of crazy by now. Maybe he's a fugitive. Is there a mental facility nearby? I can't even remember. "You're bleeding again."

He doesn't look at his hand. But surely he feels the pain? We start going around in circles and I'm keeping as much distance as I can between us. I can't believe there's no one around. Not a single person. This must be some kind of nightmare.

"Where do you live? Do you live around here somewhere?" I'm asking him this to distract him until I figure out how to get in my car and drive away. But what if someone is looking? I can't just run and leave him here. I almost killed him. I could get arrested if I did that.

He stops. "Yes."

"Yes?" I'm trying hard to think of any asylum nearby. "Where?"

He looks at me like he's trying to understand what I just said to him. Then he opens the passenger door and gets in the passenger seat. My mouth hangs open. He just got in my car. He's in my car. What the hell do I do now? I open my door and peer inside. He looks calm and collected like he wasn't just hit by a car like he's not naked in my car. "Do you want me to take you home? Is that it?"

His jaw starts twitching violently and I startle. He clenches his jaw and looks my way. His eyes are so green. He nods. He looks so harmless right now. I hesitantly get in my seat and I close the door. He's staring at me again and I feel my stomach churn. My bladder is so full. One sudden move from him and I'll piss myself.

"Uh, where do you live? You sure you don't want me to take you to a hospital?"

"No hospital." He says it calmly, but I'm still scared. My fingers tremble as I grab the steering wheel. Perhaps he doesn't speak the language. His English isn't as great.

"Okay. Where do you live?"

He points ahead. I start driving. He doesn't say anything, just looks at me. I try not to look scared as I stare ahead. This is going to be a long damn night. "Just tell me where to go."