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“You have no reason to be nervous, Delilah.” Adonis announces the next day, voice low and serious as he locks his hand around my wrist. His fingertips sink into my pulse.

Telling him I’m not nervous would be useless because he canfeelthe truth. Instead, I attempt to relax as we pull up to the manor for the so-called charity gala.

The instant I turn my head, his eyes snap to mine and the curve of his lips sets my soul at ease.

I have a million and one conflicting emotions when it comes to Adonis, but right now all I feel is lucky to be on the receiving end of one of his rare smiles.

“Nobody in there is gonna touch you,” he says. “And if they do, they won’t make it home tonight.”

The dark promise in his voice and the soft glide of his skin against mine dissipates some of the lingering tension.

Adonis’ touches have grown to be the opposite of infrequent, a development I missed until it was too late. Everytime we’re in the same room now, his hands are somewhere on me.

Fingertips grazing.

Palms caressing.

Like he doesn’t know I’m okay if he isn’t touching me.

Biting my lip, I admire the confident set of his jaw and shoulders as the car slows.

Something about Adonis is magnetic despite his preference for being alone. Still, so much about him remains shrouded in mystery even though it feels like he peels away a different layer every time we interact.

I know what I heard about him before he took me, but there’s no evidence of it. No paper trail like there is for Victor.

Just then, the glint of a watch face catches my attention in the semi-dark car, so I shift my focus.

Victor’s hands are anchored at the base of the steering wheel, driving us toward the Rose Manor.

Unlike Adonis, I’ve decoded Victor. At least a part of him. After he told me he went away for twenty years, I Googled him and found the case.

A twenty-year sentence for second degree murder. He beat his sister’s abuser until he succumbed to his injuries and died. Quietly, he served every single day of his sentence and started working for Samson Air right after release. That’s all I could find, but it was all I needed.

I knew there was a reason I always felt safe around him. When I went downstairs for breakfast earlier and spotted him, I almost rushed into his arms in front of Adonis, overcome with gratitude for him finding what I needed about my mother.

Adonis’ mouth near my ear breaks my concentration onthe other man. “Stay close to me tonight, menace. I can’t protect you if I don’t know where you are.”

A treacherous shiver skates down my back at the cool rush of his breath against my flesh.

I swallow until the lump in my throat is a pebble instead of a boulder.

All of that just for my mouth to run dry at the exact moment Victor idles the car at the end of the long drive.

So much has changed since the last time I was at this manor. And yet, so much has remained the same.

My brother is still spineless for bringing me here without telling me why.

And I still don’t want to witness what goes on within these walls.

Adonis gets out and opens my door for me, his hand extended so I can get out.

Eyes snagging on the upside down rose pinned to his left lapel, I paint an artificial smile on my face and exit the car.

Tonight won’t be anything like the last time I was here. He promised me.

The Lost Roseis a secret society comprised of two ranks: The Obsidian Order and The Crimson Accord. One rank you’re born into and the other you earn your way into, hopeful for a chance at initiation.

To qualify for initiation, some form of sacrifice must be made. The most common sacrifices are financial because The Society thrives on capital. Other times, a woman’s virginity is sacrificed in anauction to a member of The Obsidian Order in exchange for her family’s spot in The Crimson Accord.