Chapter 1

Sam struggled to squeeze through the door to Building 21 as people walked through her big duffle strap across her chest and her battered backpack between her shoulder blades. She smiled at everyone she passed and wasn’t to put off by the mixed reactions she got. Yes, it was all men, but it was aviation and aeronautics school and the ratio was heavily weighted towards men on campus. A few of the guys looked at her with waggling eyebrows and whistles, but she ignored it. Some looked at her with shock and a bit of hostility, but she ignored that, too.

She was accepted on scholarship to her first choice school. Dorm and tuition were included, and she was promised an on-campus job to help with the other expenses like food and books. She was floating on cloud nine and no one was going to bring Sam down.

It didn’t matter she had no family, no money, and no friends. She didn’t need that stuff. She was going to make it on her own. After making it out of the foster care system and graduating with straight A’s, Flight school would be a piece of cake. Eventually, she would get a job with the airlines and never go hungry again.

Despite the bags weighing her petite frame down, she practically skipped up the stairs to her assigned dorm. It was a co-ed building. There weren’t enough women that they got their own, but there were two female-only floors, so she wasn’t surprised that there were men in a variety of ages, ethnicities, and shapes. But they seemed surprised by her. She just smiled.

The first hint that something was wrong was when she reached what was supposed to be a female-only floor. It was crawling with men doing the same thing she was doing, locating their rooms and moving in. Why were they on a female only floor?

Her brow creased in confusion as she checked the printout. Building 21, floor 8, room 7. Stepping in front of a guy who seemed oblivious to her as he walked, she asked, “This is building 21, right?”

He paused, looked down at her curiously, then his brows rose. “Uh.. Yeah. Are you helping someone move in?” He was a bit older than she would expect of a new recruit, had dark curling hair, skin tanned by genetics and sun.

His brown eyes were filled with confusion and concern when she shook her head. “No, I’m looking for my dorm.”

He bit his lip, looking at her, then up and down the hall, taking a step back from the middle of the hall and tugging her with him. “Let me see your assignment?”

Separating the page from the other information in the packet, she handed it over, watching his eyes scan over it, brows rising and then muttering to himself. “Shit…” He glanced at her and a light flush covered his forehead. “Sorry … I think they fuc-” He cut himself off from cursing and cleared his throat. “I think they messed up your assignment.”

Sam’s eyes narrowed, taking back the page and looking it over. “Why? What’s wrong with it?”

One side of his face scrunched up apologetically. “Well, I mean, you are a girl, and this is a male dorm assignment.” He gave a soft huff of breath and shrugged. “Come on. I can let you in to put your stuff down while we call down to housing to fix this.”

He started walking and Sam was compelled by his aura of command, falling into step next to him. He glanced at her and grinned. “I’m Mick Royce, by the way.”

“Ugh... Sam Lawrence.” She squeezed past a group of laughing men and followed him to a door at the corner. “How do you know this is a male dorm room?”

He grinned, pulling a ring of keys out of his pocket. “Because it’s my dorm.” The door swung open to what looked like a small living room, a utilitarian set up with two 2-person couches, a battered chair, a TV that was possibly older than she was, and a small window. There was a tiny kitchenette in the corner behind the door, and Mick motioned casually for her to put her stuff down as he moved into the kitchen and grabbed a phone off the wall, tapping in only a few numbers. He was kind enough to leave the door open, so she didn’t get uncomfortable.

Looking around as she heaved her bags onto one of the couches, Sam was annoyed that she wouldn’t get to stay here. It was a nicer set up than she’d ever had before. But it should be identical to a women’s dorm, right?

“Hey Kane, listen, I’ve got a girl here with the wrong dorm assignment.” Mick spoke into the phone with a casual familiarity. “Yeah, yeah, hold on.” Putting his hand over the mouthpiece, he waved Sam over from where she was looking out the window. “Dorm page?”

Sam handed it over, leaning on the counter so she could sort of hear what was going on through the phone, her feet lifting slightly off the floor as she flexed her shoulders and braced her weight on the laminate.

“Ready? Okay, first name Sam.. Last name Lawrence.” He glanced at her as if for confirmation and nodded as she gave him a thumbs up. “Yeah, man, she was assigned to our dorms.”

There was a response, a mix of exasperation and overworked uncertainty, and Mick rolled his eyes. “I know a girl when I see one.” There was a short response, then the hum of hold music.

Sam chuckled, deciding she liked Mick; he wasn’t being gross or dismissive in the hall when she asked for directions. Mick didn’t hesitate to help her out when he saw a problem, and he clearly had a sense of humor.

Just then, the door opened again, nearly hitting her, and she gasped as a shirtless man walked in. Clearly, he came from exercising; running shorts clung to his hips and thighs, his pale and scarred chest was shiny with dried sweat, and a damp pattern of hair in a dark trail led into his shorts. His black hair was stuck to his forehead and neck, another nasty scar bisecting the right side of his face, a sweaty shirt slung over his shoulder, water bottle in hand.

He took one look at her and scowled. “The fuck, Royce, do you have to bring sluts to the dorm on day one?”

Wow, way to make a first impression, asshole!

Immediately, Sam flushed with anger and embarrassment, glaring back just as hard as he was. She spluttered with the urge to say something, too shocked to form a response quickly, but Mick rolled his eyes.

“Cut it out, Alyx. There’s a mix-up in housing and I’m helping her out.” Still with the phone to his ear, he leaned close to Sam, dropping his voice slightly. “Ignore him. He’s garbage.”

The other man, Alyx, flipped him off and stalked to one of the doors, yanking it open and slamming it shut behind him. It felt like he took all the air with him, and Sam refused to shudder. “What is his problem?”

Mick gave her a lazy shrug. “He’s grumpy pretty much all the time, but new people and routine changes push him to intolerable levels.” He nodded at the door the other man slammed through. “Move-in day combines both.”

The hold music cut out and a tiny voice came through the phone.

Looks like this was a bigger problem than anyone thought. They wanted Sam to come down to the housing office. With a sigh, she gathered her things, shaking her head at Mick’s offer to leave her bags. There was no point in leaving them because she would just have to take them to a new dorm, anyway.