Page 1

CHAPTER 1

S ara

Fear and excitement were two sides of the same coin.

Over the last two weeks, I’d become accustomed to experiencing white-hot electricity at all hours of the day and night.

Because he’d been watching me.

Hungering for me.

Biding his time like a shadowed monster planning on capturing his prey.

This was just a fabulous, very dark game and one I’d become intent on playing. That didn’t mean I wasn’t terrified yet scintillated at what he could and would do.

He knew where I lived. He’d been in my apartment. I’d felt his presence so many times, often in the middle of the night.

He’d touched me.

He’d tasted me.

And I’d wanted him to. I’d wanted more.

He was my greatest fantasy, the ultimate darkness that fed my soul.

He held an air of practiced indifference, wielding nonverbal threats. Maybe to him they were promises.

He was the Seducer. However, I reminded myself this was a game, an indecent foray into experiencing a level of darkness only previously experienced in virtual reality games. At least for most. I’d yet to be officially invited into the upper echelon, a world where everything deemed inappropriate, dangerous, or kinky was allowed.

Encouraged even.

A one-way ticket to wealth and clout.

That didn’t mean I wasn’t nervous, anxious over what my handsome stalker would do. I also sensed I was being tested prior to being handed a formal invitation. How I reacted might determine my future.

But something was off tonight. As if the game had taken a macabre turn. I couldn’t put my finger on why I was certain of it.

“Don’t you just love this place?” Tina asked. She was swaying and gyrating to the music. “A perfect name. Dark Delights. Hey, maybe we should check out the rooms upstairs. I heard something about the place being haunted.”

She made a sound like she was a ghost. “Right. Ghosts in a warehouse.” I glanced at the partial loft, the area closed off to the clubbers. The millionth creepy-crawly slid down my spine. I was certain I was being watched from the darkness.

“I need to go,” I told my best friend. “I have an early morning.”

Somehow, I managed to hear Tina growling under the fairy princess mask she was wearing and the loud music. Why did all clubs need to have primal drums? She’d convinced me to come out to a club like the one I worked in several nights a week.

Only she didn’t know that.

No one did.

“Come on. Let’s just take a quick glance upstairs.”

A strange lump in my throat caught me off guard. I glanced around at the partygoers, suddenly desperate for some fresh air. “Not tonight, but we’ll do this again. I promise.”

“You okay to walk to your car?”

“Stop worrying. I have mace.”

She flicked her fairy wings at me, but I knew as soon as I walked out, she’d find some hot company to keep her entertained.

The place was jam packed and before I walked out of the entrance door, I turned to see if he was following. He wasn’t fooling me. I knew he was here. Sadly, I couldn’t see him and felt disappointed.

I headed out, amazed at the number of people standing in line to get in. As soon as I turned the corner, I ripped off my mask, sucking in the cool air. The walk to my car would do me some good. With rapid long strides, I kept my head down and headed directly toward where I parked.

However, it wasn’t long before I sensed him.

Him.

He had a name of course, the game no longer the cryptic event I’d heard usually occurred. But nothing about the time spent with the powerful man had been usual in any sense.

Hair prickled on the back of my neck and I stopped walking, my breathing shallower than before. I felt him all around me, could almost gather a whiff of his musky aftershave. I wasn’t imagining his presence. He was there, hiding in the darkness as he’d done so often.

There were few people on the street, the late night in the middle of the week the reason. Maybe I’d been a fool in enjoying a night with my friend, all the while knowing he was waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike.

Yet I wasn’t afraid.

A huge part of me hungered for him to make his move. He still had no clue how strong I was, how far I was willing to go to win the game.

I continued walking, controlling my breath as I passed several stores and bars, still listening.

Still waiting.

I knew tonight was the night. I’d envisioned this moment, the initial nightmares turning into enraptured fantasies about the mystery man. Up until a few weeks ago, I’d felt a suffocating sense of despair, no longer seeing the point of scouring the earth for happiness.

But everything had changed the moment he’d entered my life, his unspoken possessiveness keeping my rapt attention. Perhaps he had kept my very sanity intact. How odd was it that a man I’d never thought would be interested in me had managed to prevent me from falling into the darkest abyss of my life. Maybe that’s why I felt so drawn to him, almost as if our connection was years in the making.

My pussy ached from the need, a desire that had become overwhelming the last two weeks. The Seducer certainly knew how to boost my appreciative apprehension.

I hurried my step, not bothering to dart a glance over my shoulder.

He was there.

He was always there.

Always wearing a mask when playing the game, his identity frozen behind the world of virtual reality. Reapers, demons, mad hockey men, phantoms, and werewolves. He never wore the same mask twice. If they were being used to scare me, he’d failed. I relished the optimism of darkness, preferring the made-up worlds created by masterful designers and gamers to the shitstorm I’d fallen into.

He was everything I’d ever wanted and nothing I should crave.

Tonight was the night we’d finally take another step into unknown but sensual territory. I’d be able to prove my worthiness. I was certain of it. So much so I’d purchased a new costume for the occasion, pretending as if I’d been interested in the men fawning all over me.

He’d been inside the club, so close yet unreachable. He’d been watching over me even though I hadn’t been able to locate him in the crowd.

I thought about my next course of actions. My car was on the other side of the street, less than two blocks away. If I could just make it there, I might manage to unlock it and jump inside, locking the doors afterward to keep me safe.

There was no sense in running. He knew where I lived. Where I worked out. Where I… worked. He had every advantage and I knew only a little about him.

Except that his hunger was insatiable.

And that he was a dangerous, unhinged man with a dubious past. Then again, didn’t everyone harbor a secret or two?

I weaved my way through a small crowd of people before making a sharp turn onto another street. I immediately backed against the brick facade of a building, holding my breath as tingles continued to rise and fall like goosebumps floating across my skin. With my hand shaking, I reached into my purse, grabbing the pocketknife I’d started always keeping with me. With the blade flicked open, I waited for his majesty to provide me with his presence.

The man had balls as well as a heightened level of audacity to think he could manage to sweep me away from the area without being noticed by anyone. Maybe he just didn’t care.

Why should he?

He was virtually untouchable. He’d proven that time and time again.

I took several deep breaths, waiting for him to cross the barrier.

But he didn’t.

Groaning, I found the courage to glance around the corner. Immediately, I launched into confronting him. “Why hide in the dark? Come out and play with me.”

A half dozen people glanced at the crazy woman addressing no one.

There was no man dressed in dark attire, no freak in a mask waiting to finish what I’d started.

There were just people, some walking arm in arm as they finished their business for the evening. I laughed softly, sliding back into my hiding spot so I could collect myself.

What an idiot I was. He’d figured out I was onto him, sensing him.

I’d been determined to win, ending the game that had been tossed back at me. Even before it officially began. Damn it. He wasn’t making a move. He wasn’t ready. Sighing, I fingered the knife, not realizing I’d nicked my pinky at first. When I did, I flattened the blade and shoved my finger into my mouth, sucking like a little baby. Furious, I shoved the knife back into place, more frustrated than I’d been since the start of the game.

I’d been wrong as I’d been one too many times. Tonight wasn’t the night, just another aspect of the cat and mouse game we’d been playing for weeks.

Damn it.

Damn everything.

I had to win.

This was my contest to lose and that wasn’t going to happen. Too much was at stake. But in order to win, I’d need to turn the tables, becoming the aggressor instead of playing the willing victim.

Perhaps tonight I’d set a trap. The thought brought a malevolent smile to my face as I moved to the corner, waiting for two cars to pass before heading toward my vehicle.

I fumbled to find my keys, cursing under my breath when almost dropping them. On top of everything, I’d become clumsy and careless. That’s the way he played the game, feeding on my weaknesses while I stewed in the unknowing darkness.

With one more street to cross, I took a deep breath, looking both ways. Still hoping I’d catch side of his all too familiar mask.

There was nothing but darkness.

I’d taken only a few steps from the curb when I heard a screeching noise. Before I knew what was happening, a car careened around the corner, gunning right for me. I was paralyzed on the spot, shocked when I was able to glance in through the front windshield.

The bastard driving was wearing a Purge mask. The glowing eyes were impossible to ignore. And instant recognition jetted through me.

I’d seen the sedan before. This wasn’t… No, who the hell was behind the wheel?

What was he doing, really trying to kill me?

Shock tore through me and I willed my feet to move, but they refused.

Suddenly, I was tossed into the air, pitched over something solid.

And I heard a single gunshot.

What the hell?

The driver continued on, the sound lessening until it disappeared. By that point I was fighting with everything I had, somehow managing to slip from the powerful hold. Without looking back, I bolted forward, terrified of everything.

Fearful of him and what he could do to me if he captured me. But that wasn’t my only fear. I was terrified of my emotions and the filthy thoughts racing through my mind.

Most of all, I was petrified of my desire. I ran.