Chapter 0002

Two months prior, my brother Dylan had introduced me to Asher. Dylan had been about to leave for his semester abroad.

“Asher’s my best friend,” Dylan had told me. Turning to Asher, he said, “I need you to take care of Cynthia for me while I’m gone.”

I bristled with annoyance. Dylan was so overprotective, he always treated me like a little kid. “Dylan, I’m an adult now. I can take care of myself.”

Dylan gave me a soft smile. “Maybe, but you’ll always be my little sister. You can’t blame me for worrying about you.”

“You don’t need to worry about me.”

Dylan opened his mouth to speak, but Asher cut him off.

“I will take care of her,” Asher said like a vow.

The tension in Dylan’s shoulders eased. “Good. That’s a relief. Thank you.”

Neither man seemed eager to listen to me. Asher had only barely glanced at me the whole time.

I’d heard of Asher even before meeting him. His cold, standoffish reputation preceded him. I had no idea how he and Dylan, always warm and smiling, came to be such good friends.

Regardless, I purposefully avoided Asher since that moment, and he’d seemed content to keep his own distance. But now, standing in his dorm room with his hand on my arm, I was snared in his attention.

Are you going to tell me what’s going on? He was still waiting for an answer. When I didn’t give one, his gaze narrowed.

“How long after Dylan left did you hook up with Joseph?” Asher asked. “It’s only been two months.”

I didn’t need my brother’s permission to date, and I certainly didn’t need to explain myself to Asher. “This has nothing to do with you.”

I attempted to rip my arm from his grasp, but he held firm. His hand was hot on my cool, damp skin.

“Joseph thinks he’s smooth,” Asher said. “He walks down this hallway to use the side stairwell up to his room. He avoids using the main stairwell, but none of us are fooled. Everyone in this building knows what he has going on.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Cynthia, I’ve seen him bring at least six girls up to his room in the past two months.”

The air punched from my lungs. No, that couldn’t be right. Joseph had a solid reputation as a popular, future Alpha. He was a center forward on the soccer team, and never missed a practice. He held doors open for women, and everyone said how much of a gentleman he was.

With me, he had always whispered soft sweet words in my ear when we were together. He’d complimented my looks, and my body, and sometimes he’d say how much he wanted to keep me wrapped up like a present just for him.

Until today, he’d returned all my messages, usually including lots of text hearts.

There was no way he could be doing the same with other woman.

“You don’t believe me,” Asher said, not a question.

“I have no reason to trust you.” I had to get away from Asher. I needed to see Joseph. “You clearly don’t approve. I bet you’d say anything to keep me away from him, but it won’t work!”

I tried again to break Asher’s hold. When he wouldn’t budge, I grabbed his wrist with my hand and twisted.

He didn’t even wince. Instead, his free hand pried my grip away.

“Let me go,” I demanded.

Asher’s jaw clenched, but he didn’t say anything. His touch wasn’t hard enough to bruise, but it was firm, like a shackle.

I met his glare with my own. “You can’t stop me from seeing Joseph. Tonight.”

“You want to see him so badly?” Asher growled. “Come with me.”

I planted my heels. I didn’t want to go anywhere with him.

When we reached Joseph’s door, I squirmed against Asher’s hold with renewed fury. Asher couldn’t be here for this.

“Let go of me!”

To my surprise, he complied, but only to reach in front of me and open Joseph’s door.

A dim table light illuminated the large space bright enough for me to see the tangled sheets of the bed – and the two figures entwined under them.

Joseph had his mouth against the neck of another woman. His hips pushed between her open thighs. Her face scrunched up in pleasure.

My stomach dropped to the floor. “Joseph?”

It couldn’t be him. It had to be some other guy who looked just like him, who had borrowed his room. Joseph wouldn’t do this to me.

The couple stilled. The girl, gasping, snatched at the sheet to hide her exposed breasts. Joseph rolled away from her and up onto his feet beside the bed. Grabbing the comforter, he wrapped it around his waist.

“Asher?” Joseph ran a hand over his face, wiping sweat from his brow. He laughed. “Now isn’t the best time. Did you need something?”

That was Joseph’s voice. His laugh. His face. His body, walking toward us. I couldn’t deny what I was seeing any longer.

“Joseph?” I whispered again, chest aching. There had to be some explanation for this.

Joseph’s hand dropped. He looked at me as if noticing me for the first time, and with that recognition, anger followed. His brow lowered.

“Cynthia? What are you doing here?” Glancing between me and Asher, his lip curled into an ugly snarl. “Are you checking up on me? Did you coax Asher to keep an eye on me?”

“N-No, I –”

He wouldn’t let me finish. “You didn’t have to bring him into this. If we had something to talk about, we could do it privately.”

“But there is something!” I said in a rush before he could cut me off again. I stepped into the room. “It’s really important, and we need to—”

“Get out,” Joseph snapped.

“But –”

“Now, Cynthia.” Starting forward, he roughly shoved my shoulders, pushing me backwards. “I’m so sick of clingy girls like you, watching me every second.”

My feet skidded across the floor tiles. I struggled to stay upright.

“Do you think you own me? You think you can tell me what I can and can’t do?” His sharp scowl tore into me.

“If you would listen –”

“You’ve gone too far this time. We’re done.”

“Joseph, please!”

“Don’t call me. Don’t text me. Don’t speak to me.”

My heels caught the doorframe, and I stumbled into Asher, who hadn’t moved an inch from where he’d been.

His hand caught my elbow as I righted myself against the wall of his body. When I was steady, his hand fell away so quickly I wondered if I had imagined it.

I turned back to Joseph. I started forward again, ready to fight to get him to listen. “I only want to—”

Joseph slammed the door in my face. If I had been one inch closer, it would have broken my nose.

I stood frozen for a moment, staring at the grain of the wooden door. Disbelief pulsed through my veins. I couldn’t move.

How could this have happened?

Asher crossed his arms over his chest. I faced him and found a pair of cold eyes staring back at me.

He’d led me here, knowing this would happen.

Embarrassment and hated curdled in my stomach. I felt I might be sick.

His face revealed no hint of emotion. No sympathy. No guilt. No shame.

He asked, voice flat, “Now do you believe me?”