I won’t hesitate to get my hands bloody for her. I saw the pain in Elizabeth’s eyes when I rescued her from an attacker. Quiet, mousy, and beautiful. The girl is cloaked under the invisibility of dirt and stigma. She keeps to herself in the community of homeless people. But I will not let her painful past haunt her anymore. Her scars tell a story that makes my blood boil. I see her. I want her. I thought Black Angels was my only obsession until I met her. The club was formed after my brother’s tragic death. It transformed my life. It gave me the power and reach I need to save Elizabeth. And I will not stop at anything until she’s safe in my arms. I need to mark her as mine. Forever.

The club was my entire life. That is, until I met her. I’m the wrong man for Sophie. Drugs, danger, and death. My work requires me to pay a heavy price. These past 16 years have been a mistake. And what’s worse? My destructive life could get her killed. She’s too innocent. Protecting her is my duty. Her luscious curves, my obsession. I need to make her mine. To claim her sweet body. But she’s about to find out what I’m made of. Can she get past the darkness that’s hidden within me?

Luca Sometimes, you just have to take a step back and reflect - at least, that was what Jason always told me. After the past three years, I find his advice more and more relevant. He was the one that convinced me to do what my grandparents wanted and go into the military. My four years in the Navy, sailing huge ass ships and going to every point of the globe, gave me that new perspective. The world was different, constantly changing, but everything in my hometown stayed the same. My friends were the same- being assholes, mostly, but the same. My home was the same one my grandparents lived in- well, at least until I moved to Las Vegas. But my 6 years in Vegas is coming to an end, and maybe… I can get back the one thing I hoped hadn’t changed. Clairissa I didn’t spend 15 years pining over Luca… Hell no… I definitely didn’t do that. I didn’t spend a thousand sleepless nights hoping he was safe on a boat in the middle of the ocean. I certainly didn’t wish he’d take me back after dumping me in high school, because that’s pretty sad… Then again, who just ups and runs away to join the military after taking my virginity and giving me a romance I just couldn’t forget? Now, our high school reunion is coming up, and I’m not 15 anymore. I made a promise to myself to get some answers and take my turn to run away. He was my first love, my only love- because he tainted my view of men so beautifully that I couldn’t betray him, even after so long.

Anthony: To some, I’m a savior. To others, I’m a faithful friend. To yet more, I’m a man that shouldn’t be crossed. … To one person, I am all of those things and more. It’s honestly strange, being so close to someone, yet we’ve never said more than two words to each other. For four years, I’ve paid to see her- to get a massage and a little bit extra at the end. I didn’t know who she was, but she did her job well. Twice a week, never missing an appointment, she eased my tired body and gave me some peace. I’d do anything to protect that peace… even letting her into my heart. Cassandra: People take advantage of everyone around them- sometimes, in worse or more profound ways than others. My parents pushed me to excel, taking advantage of my genius brain. That didn’t work out. Katherin took advantage of me in an opportune situation, and I joined countless girls she’d victimized in these rooms. But I never could’ve expected, with all my smarts, that I’d meet a man that would redefine my notion of ‘taking advantage’ of someone. He made his advantage my security. He took my faults and morphed them into strengths. He wasn’t easy, and he wasn’t kind. … But he was mine, and no man can resist taking something broken and rebuilding it with his own, two, hands.