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WICKED AND BOUND

He vowed to protect her. Now he’ll risk everything to save her…

Nash Scott thought he’d reclaimed the love he lost when Haisley Rowe walked back into his life. But their fragile reunion shatters when she’s taken by the brutal gang they’ve been hunting. Nash will stop at nothing to save her—even infiltrate the secret society behind her abduction and play their twisted games.

Haisley Rowe once survived heartbreak by running from Nash—hiding a truth that would have ripped them apart. Now, he appears during a captive auction to claim her. Together, they scheme an escape while she tries to guard her heart—and her secret. But their only path to freedom lies in baring her soul and divulging the devastating truth that could destroy them.

With shadowy forces tightening their grip, one wrong move could mean losing everything. And trusting in the love that refuses to die might be their only chance at survival.

CHAPTER ONE

January 8

Lafayette, Louisiana

Nash Scott’s hands shook as he gripped the steering wheel, scouring the road for any sign of an old seventies-style brown conversion van—one speeding Haisley Rowe away to God knew where. Same type of vehicle used in the other mall abductions. Same MO. Same circumstances.

His training screamed at him to think, not react, buthisHaisley had been abducted moments ago. The image of her purse scattered across the mall floor, her phone still ringing, seared his brain.

And now she was gone, almost certainly abducted by the same ring of traffickers who had been kidnapping young women from Oakfield Mall for the past year, so they could sell the victims to rich pricks who cared more about getting off than the lives of the innocents taken. Worse, this trafficking ring was well organized and had significant resources. They must, in order to stay undetected and under law enforcement’s radar for so long.

Straight up? He’d failed Haisley.

Two years ago, she’d walked out of his life—and ripped out his heart. Last night, he’d finally held her in his arms again after they’d both admitted they still had feelings for each other.

“I’ll never let anyone hurt you,”he’d whispered against her hair as she’d tumbled into slumber, her skin still flushed from their lovemaking. He’d drifted off, dreaming of sharing a future with her. This morning, he’d watched her sleep in his bed, her soft, womanly scent clinging to his sheets. Then he’d gone—unwittingly leaving her vulnerable and alone.

Every cell in his body screamed at him to save Haisley. Where had these merciless monsters taken her? She couldn’t slip through his fingers, not again. The universe couldn’t be that cruel.

He had to keep thinking. He had to find her. He had to bring her home safely.

Fuck, he should have stayed with Haisley this morning, should have hustled to the Oakfield Mall to support her while she held the presser about the shocking murder-suicide overnight of her bosses, George and Mila Benedict. And the moment she texted that she’d secured a meeting with that sketchy janitor—who had been working every day each of the previous victims disappeared—he should have raced to her side. Instead, he’d been analyzing the explosive intel his brother had extracted from the burner phone he and Haisley had swiped from George Benedict’s office last night.

His conversation earlier with Trees haunted him.

“The phone was loaded with encrypted files. Took me most of the night to crack them. There’s a website. Looks like a high-end rug import business, but it’s a front. The real business is human trafficking.”

“Rugs Direct Unlimited. We already know. We found references to it in Benedict’s office.”

“It gets worse. New ‘merchandise’ shows up on the site within hours of acquisition. They work fast, Nash. Really fast.”

And now Haisley was in their grasp. Nash’s gut twisted. His chest constricted.

Some fucking protector he’d turned out to be.

The early morning sun glinted off his windshield as he weaved through traffic, fighting the urge to ram vehicles out of his way while he frantically scanned the roads for the van. No sign of it, goddamn it.

Time was his enemy. Every second that crawled by was another second Haisley slipped further from his grasp.

Think. Focus. Act.

He punched the hands-free button on his steering wheel. “Call Ethan.”

The phone rang twice before Garrison, his roommate and fellow operative, answered. “I saw your team text. You’re sure? Haisley is gone?”

“Yeah. She’s been taken.” The words scalded his throat like acid. “Brown conversion van, likely headed toward I-49. No plate visible. About three minutes ahead of me.”

He heard Ethan scrambling, probably grabbing his gear and keys. “Details? Do you know anything else?”