Page 4 of River of Deceit

Blaze frowns at me. "No, it was just — never mind." He shakes his head, looking back at Asch. "You wanted something?" he asks.

"Idid," Asch remarks dryly. "But I guess Pandora and I will have to go enjoy ourselves alone."

"In all fairness," I point out, "You joked about roofie-ing me."

"Okay, fair," Asch says with another boyish smile. "But you're still gonna give us a chance, right?"

"It's anusnow, is it?" I ask, raising my eyebrows.

I've never slept with two guys at once, but the idea intrigues me. I give Blaze another once over. He's certainly not hard on the eyes. Maybe an inch taller than Asch, with dark blond hair and a fit figure, though not quite as muscular as Asch. Sleeping with him would be one way to get close to my top suspect.

And the Bouchard Syndicate.

"If you want it to be," Asch replies, stepping into me until my back is pressed against the wall. He leans in, his lips hovering over mine. "We can definitely show you a good time."

I open my mouth for him, tasting the cheap beer, and pull him towards me. He's not a bad kisser, and that gives me some ideas of what else his mouth could be doing.

When my eyes flutter open, the first thing I see is Blaze watching from beside Asch.

His expression is dark and hungry.

He's definitely into this. Whateverthisis.

I wonder how many times they've done this before.

"Want to take this someplace more private?" Asch asks, runninghis hand lightly down my arm. "Or are you even more adventurous than you let on?" His voice has a hunger that makes a shiver run down my back. God, he has a sexy voice.

"Aren't your frat brothers going to complain, if they see you having fun without them?" I ask, pushing away from the wall, which brings me even closer to Asch.

I don't care if people see me, but I don't need to gain a reputation before classes have even started.

I should lay low for at least a week, right?

Blaze winks at me. "They'll cheer us on. They know that good brothers celebrate each other’s successes."

"And school spirit, et cetera," Asch drawls with a laugh. He takes my arm in his, then glances at Blaze. "We'll take you to the suite instead of the peon's quarters."

I wonder ifThe Suiteis where the leader — Zayden — sleeps. How manyThe Suites would one frat house have? I follow the two of them, letting them fondle and kiss me on the way there.

By the time we arrive at the door, Asch has my bra unfastened and the straps are halfway down my arms. "Right this way, m'lady," Asch says, his expression brimming with mischief and arousal alike.

"Do you own a fedora?" I tease with a laugh.

All of my good cheer vanishes the moment Blaze opens the door.

There's already a woman on the bed, half naked and disheveled. She's struggling to try to move, unable to lift her limbs which keep falling back onto the bed.

"What the fuck?" I yank myself away from Asch and Blaze, hurrying over to the side of the bed. "Hey, are you okay?" I ask her.

The woman looks at me with half-lidded eyes. "Where… Where am I?" Her voice hitches in the question. Fury engulfs me, clawing its way through my guts.

"Is this some kind of sick fucking joke?" I snap at the two guys as I turn to them. They're both still standing in the doorway.

Blaze holds his hands up. "What? No. This isn't my room. We didn't know she'd be here." He glances at Asch before looking back atme. "We could go to my room instead. It'll be a little more cramped?—"

My mouth drops open in shock. "What? You want to justleaveher here like this?"

I turn back to the woman. She has thick black hair that at some point earlier had been in a neat braid, but now much of the hair had come loose. "Hey, what's your name?" I ask, brushing some of the strands away from her face. "I'm Pandora."