CHAPTER 1

AUDREY’S POV

“This is a bad idea.”

“Bad ideas always turn out to be good, Rey. It'll be fun!.”

“Can I just stay at home?” I groaned, my voice filled with reluctance as I thought of possible ways to skip out on another of her numerous wild adventures.

Claire was unaffected by my tone, her eyes fixed on the mirror as she applied her smoky make-up and damn, she always looked fantastic in that.

I loved Claire, but whenever she said the word ‘fun’, I tried to run for my dear life. Her fun times were mostly suicidal for me, and while I was over-exaggerating it, ever since I had known Claire, we have always gotten into trouble.

“Yes and if I remember correctly, Lucas Kent, your sweet boyfriend, is the host of the party,” Claire said, rolling her eyes at me through the mirror.

I ground my teeth in frustration because she was right. It was almost the end of summer and Lucas had suggested we had one last bonfire party before college resumed. I was gonna be as dramatic as hell when I had him in my arms. He knew how much I hated parties.

I blushed at the thought of having Lucas in my arms after a long while. How lucky was I to have landed myself in the same college with Lucas? The sweetest man ever.

“What am I going to tell my parents?” I hissed out, that seemed to be the only flaw in her plan that she hadn’t thought through but to my surprise, Claire laughed hysterically like she was at a comedy show.

“Rey, I got it all figured out, you only have to look as innocent as you always do and we can surely escape without much question.” She blew me a kiss and I let out a defeated sigh.

“You thought it through,” I muttered, moving closer to her, and she turned to me with a huge smile while I let her work her magic on my face like she usually does.

I found my parents sitting in the living room with stern looks on their faces and I greeted them slowly, my heart pounding loudly in my chest.

My mother’s eyes turned towards my direction, her brows creasing into a tiny frown as she noticed me leaning against the door. I wasn't expecting anything apart from that frown, that's how she's been to me since the death of my brother.

It felt like most times, they wished I was the one that had died rather than their precious son, the one they held in high esteem.

“Hi, Mr and Mrs James,” Claire greeted, smiling broadly at my parents whose faces had turned into wide smiles at the sight of her.

“Claire!” My mother shrieked in excitement, rushing towards her to pull her into a warm hug. I wanted that, I had missed what it felt like to be hugged, I missed the warmth my parents had once carried.

I zoned their conversations out as I walked toward the kitchen to get a bottle of water. Claire was probably going to bask in their attention before she made her intentions known.

“Thank you, Mrs James, we will be careful,” Claire said as she pulled me out of the kitchen and out of the house.

“Stay safe Claire, make wise choices!” My mother called out, only acknowledging Claire’s presence.

I bit down on my lip, hoping the pain would drown out the longing I felt in my heart. It was foolish of me to think that she would ever see me other than the killer who had murdered her son.

I plastered a smile on my face as Claire drove us to Lucas’ house, I didn’t see the need to bring her into my family crisis, and my parents had drilled it into my head to keep everything about our life private.

The loud music echoed from two houses down the street and I wondered how this madness was going on and no one had decided to call the cops on Lucas yet. Well, he was a billionaire heir after all.

“I am so pumped!” Claire screamed the moment she had safely parked the car and I rolled my eyes in fake annoyance. Claire lived for the nightlife, and she was the most extroverted person I had ever seen.

Lucas wasn’t hard to find, it seems Claire had already texted our friend circle announcing our royal arrival at the venue.

“Hey babe,” Lucas mumbled, pulling me into a toe-curling kiss and my cheeks turned crimson in an instant.

We had been dating for more than a year but I still acted like a blushing bride under his melting gaze.

“I am going to go get a drink, do you want one?” Claire asked as she ran towards the makeshift bar they had made, not even waiting to hear my answer.

I looked around, the voices in my head loud as I tried to identify the people around me. My eyes tried to find Claire but I couldn't see her anywhere.

“Did I lose you again?” Lucas muttered, his lips brushing softly against my temple and I blushed profusely.

Claire had always said I found ways of getting lost in my mind.

“I was just looking for Claire,” I replied, my eyes scanning through the crowd. It seemed like she had forgotten her mission the moment she got to the bar.

“You look beautiful,” Lucas said, pulling me closer to his body as we slowly danced to the music playing in the background.

I smiled, pressing my face deeper into his chest. Lucas had been the best thing that had happened to me after my brother’s death.

“Come on,” Lucas said, dragging me away from the crowd.

My eyes were wide in shock as I stared at the scenery that was right in front of me. Lucas had made a temporary garden at the back of his house with a few of my best flowers.

“This is beautiful.”

“Not as beautiful as you. I love you, Rey.” He muttered, placing a gentle kiss on my lips. The kiss turned passionate in an instant and I wrapped my arms around him, knowing that I was ready to give him what was most precious to me… my virginity.

“Lucas…” I whispered as we pulled away and looked into each other's eyes. I could feel the heat in his eyes and the way his hand gripped my waist, I knew he wanted me too.

“Rey, if you keep calling my name like that-” He paused as he let me go and ran a hand through his hair.

“I want you, Rey. So badly. I don't want it to seem like I'm rushing you or anything, I just-”

I interrupted him by placing my lips on his shyly, my hands gripping the hem of his shirt. When I pulled away, he looked at me in surprise and I nodded.

“I want you too. You're not rushing me or anything. I've wanted this for a long time too…” I confessed and a smile broke out on his face as he pulled me by my waist and kissed me deeply, his tongue fighting for dominance over mine.

It was the best night of my life, the pain mixed with a great amount of pleasure and Lucas hovering over me while my name tumbled out of his lips as moans… I couldn't have asked for anything better.

But I regretted my decision in less than a week. Lucas had stopped talking to me. He stopped calling, he stopped texting, it was like… he disappeared.