Prologue

"I must be in a museum, because you are truly a work of art," a familiar deep, gravelly voice whispers in my ear.

A shiver runs down my spine, warmth creeps up my skin.

I would know that voice anywhere.

The music from the party pulsates through me, it's almost hard to hear him. I continue looking forward, my eyes calmly searching for my friend, DeeDee, who had run to the bathroom just minutes before.

His hand goes to my arm as he leans forward again, the contact sending a jolt of electricity through me.

I turn around slowly, my gaze locking onto the gorgeous, jade-green eyes of my best friend"s older brother.

Drake Baron.

"Drake," I say evenly.

His eyes narrow as he tries to focus on my face. I looked a lot different than the last time we saw each other. I went from being a tomboy who loved to play hockey, to embracing my female side and learning how to do my makeup and hair.

"Em?" he gasps. "What are you doing here?"

"Visiting."

He pulls back. He looks around the frat house we"re currently in and then back at me.

"You got a boyfriend that goes here?"

"No," I chuckle. "One of my teammates."

He nods slowly. "Let"s leave and go catch up."

"Drake, I can"t just leave."

"Don"t you trust me? I"m your bestie's big brother, I"m harmless."

"Bestie"s big brother with the lamest pickup line known to man. I cannot wait to tell her about this."

"I"ll have you know it"s worked before."

"Pity date, I"m sure."

"Ouch," he chuckles. "C"mon Emmy, let"s go to IHOP and get some pancakes."

I stare back at him for a moment, taking all of him in. That long jet-black hair, the ringlet curls that the girls have always swooned over. Those eyes and that body.

He"s always been a natural athlete, the quarterback, and captain of the hockey and track teams. He is effortlessly smart and charming.

This is that moment, you know, the one in all the romcoms where the awkward dork from high school gets her moment with her childhood crush?

I"m living it right now.

"Fine," I sigh. "Let me text my friend and tell her that I'll meet her back at her place."

I send a quick text and glance up at him. He flashes that million-dollar smile back at me before he laces his fingers through mine and tugs me out of the Kappa Alpha frat house.

An electric shot jolts through me again at the touch. It feels as though there's a different kind of energy coming from our intertwined fingers.

That's new.

I look down at our hands, wondering if it's just my imagination or if he feels it too.

"You are the last person I thought I"d see here."

"I"m sure."

He tugs me into him and gives me a giant side hug.

"You look so good; I didn"t even recognize you."

"I"m not sure if that"s supposed to be a compliment or not."

"Definitely a compliment. You"ll probably never believe me when I tell you this, but I always had a little crush on you in high school."

I stop dead in my tracks and look back at him stupidly. I shake my head in disbelief.

"Are you making fun of me?"

"What? No. I"m being honest with you."I roll my eyes and continue walking.

This is a dream come true. How many nights did I fantasize about this exact moment happening?

The frat house happens to be close to an IHOP, the owners were geniuses by putting their businesses near Greek Row.

We walk in, seat ourselves, and a waitress comes to the table almost immediately. We place our orders and, as the waitress walks away, Drake is grinning back at me.

He leans back in the booth and puts one arm up on the backside.

He"s gorgeous like he walked right out of a magazine with those dimples and goatee.

His green eyes sparkle as he leans forward.

"Emma Matthews, I cannot believe you"re sitting across from me. Tell me what you"ve been up to."

"School mostly," I shrug nonchalantly.

I grab a napkin off the table and start picking at it nervously.

I cannot believe that I am here with Drake Baron. High school me is losing her mind right now.

"Still playing hockey?"

"No," I roll my eyes. "I"m a figure skater now."

"Really? You were so good at hockey."

"I"m better at figure skating."

"I believe it. You"re so talented and graceful on and off the ice."

I almost choked on the water that I took a drink of.

Did he just call me graceful? Is he drunk? Does he know who he is talking to?

"Do you know who you"re talking to?"

He grins widely. "Yes, Em, I do. You may not see it, but I always did."

"My dad always told me that I wasn"t in line when they were handing out grace and coordination."

"What would he know? You have to be both to be as good at hockey as you are."

I shrug again, fidgeting nervously with the napkin in front of me.

"How"s football?"

"It"s football. I regret not choosing hockey, but it is what it is."

Drake and I talk until the waitress brings our pancakes, and throughout eating. We continue to talk and laugh as though we're long-lost best friends.

If you were looking at us from afar, you"d never guess that we barely spoke one hundred words to each other my entire lifetime. He may have been Chasity"s brother, and I may have practically lived at their house, but we rarely spoke to each other. It"s like he never even knew I existed until this moment.

"What's your friend"s address?" he asks as he pays the bill and starts to get out of the booth.

"Shoot, I don"t know her apartment number. All the buildings look the same and I didn't think to pay attention to that because I thought I'd be with her all night. I need to text her."

I pull out my phone and text DeeDee. Hopefully, she"s still awake.

"Why don"t you come to my place? We can start walking that way just in case she doesn"t reply. I"ve got my own apartment."

"Your parents pay for you to have an apartment?"

"No, I graduate college in a month. I can pay for it myself," he chuckles. "I have a few side hustles that help pay for it."

"Side hustles?"

"I"m not just a pretty face, you know? I have some secret talents."

"What kind of secret talents?"

"If I told you then I"d have to kill you."

I pull back and glance at him in confusion. I roll my eyes and shake my head.

"Do you always drop clichés everywhere you go? Or do you think you'll come up with your own material soon?"

"Ouch. The years apart have made you feisty. I remember when you were the shy, quiet girl."

"I don't make myself small anymore," I shrug. "If that bothers you, I'm not sorry."

"I didn't say it was a bad thing."

He chuckles and laces his fingers through mine again.

I really hope that DeeDee doesn"t answer my text. Please be asleep. Please be asleep.

The two of us walk a little way, talking about the weather, the moon, and Greek Row. DeeDee doesn"t reply to my text.

"This is my place," he offers as he gestures toward a new apartment complex.

"This looks like the place DeeDee lives."

He leads me inside and to a door, he unlocks it and gestures for me to go in first.

"We can watch a movie or something. Do you want a drink?"

"I don"t drink," I answer quickly. "Alcoholic father and all."

He nods and shrugs. "I don"t drink either. I have too many goals to waste time on that."

I smile back at him, surprised by his answer. I sit down on his leather couch, and he jumps over the back of it and sits beside me.

Why is he so cute?

That"s when it happens. That"s when he leans in and kisses me so passionately that everything in my body is instantly warm and tingly.

His hand goes to my face, and he cups my cheek so sweetly. I instinctively climb into his lap.

"Are you sure about this?" he asks breathlessly.

I nod.

I"ve never been more sure of anything in my life. I"ve dreamt about this moment since I was sixteen.

And just like that, the world around us fades away, and it"s only Drake and me.

We continue to kiss, our tongues intertwining in a dance that feels so natural, yet so electrifying. My hands run through his hair, tracing the lines of his face, feeling every curve and angle of his perfect features. He holds me so tenderly, his grip warm and comforting as if he"s been waiting for this moment his entire life too.

His hands go down to cup my butt as he pulls me further onto his lap, I"m straddling him just enough to feel the rather large bulge in his pants.

Whoa. I"d heard rumors about his size, but...yikes.

His hands go to move the skirt I"m wearing completely up, his fingers slide along my red lace panties, and I tremble under his touch.

"So wet," he breathes against my mouth.

His fingers move my panties to the side as he sinks them into me. I moan against his mouth. My fingers frantically go to his pants, fighting with the button and zipper. I need to feel him in my hands, and I need to feel him inside me, like now.

As I fumble with his pants, he chuckles and helps me get them off. His erection springs free, and it"s even bigger than I could have ever imagined. My eyes widen in surprise and lust.

"Do you like what you see?" he growls, his voice low and seductive.

I nod, unable to speak. He guides me to the bedroom, and we stumble in, the intensity between us rising. He pushes me onto the bed, and I spread my legs eagerly, knowing what"s coming next.

He positions himself at my entrance, and I can"t help but beg him to take me. "Please," I whimper, my body trembling with desire.

His eyes never leave mine as he slowly pushes inside me. The sensation is intense and incredible, and I cry out, my hands clutching onto the sheets for dear life. He groans, his hips moving slowly at first.

I wrap my legs around him, pulling him in deeper, and bucking up against him. He sucks in a breath before he reaches down and lifts my shirt. His mouth seeks out my breasts, his tongue playing with my nipples.

He"s torturing me but it feels so amazing at the same time. I don"t want him to stop.

He starts to pick up his pace, his hips moving in a steady rhythm, and the pleasure washes over me like a tidal wave. I"m lost in the moment, out of my mind with desire, and I scream his name. My body tenses up, and I feel my orgasm building with each thrust.

"Drake," I cry out in pleasure. "Drake ... I"m going to ... oh!"

I have no time to finish my sentence before I"m overcome with the most intense orgasm I"ve ever experienced. My body shakes and trembles with pleasure as he continues to move inside me.

Finally, he pulls out of me, and collapses onto the bed beside me, both of us panting heavily. His erection is still rock-hard and he kisses me gently on the lips.

"You are so beautiful," he whispers.

I reach down to cup his erection sliding my fingers up and down him slowly while I stare into his eyes.

He sucks in a breath just as I break eye contact to put my mouth on his shaft.

"Em, yessss," he breathes.

My tongue rolls over the head of his length, my mouth and hands moving in sync up and down them.

I can hear his breathing go rapid; I hear his moans of pleasure which only gives me more confidence.

I take him out of my mouth and climb up him, guiding his shaft into my wet core as I straddle him.

His hands instantly go to my breasts, groping them as he thrusts up into me.

I grind down, moving slowly and drawing out the pleasure I feel each time he hits my G-spot.

"Oh God, Drake, I"m so close," I breathe, my voice shaking with desire.

His eyes meet mine, filled with intensity and passion. He leans forward, his lips grazing my ear.

"Come for me, Em," he growls, his erection throbbing inside me.

That"s all it takes.

That's all my body needed to hear, that intimate drawl in my ear. Those words were only meant for me.

I cry out in pleasure, my body convulsing around him as I climax once more. Drake follows shortly after, his hips bucking into me as he breathes my name.

We collapse onto the bed, panting heavily, our bodies still joined together. Drake"s arms wrap around me, pulling me close.

"Looks like my lame pickup line worked perfectly," he teases in my ear.

I giggle and roll my eyes. "Pity sex."

"Ouch."

He kisses my forehead and pulls me in close to him. Before I know it, we"re both asleep.

The next morning, I wake up to an empty bed. I get up and walk around the house, calling out his name.

He"s nowhere to be found. I pick up my phone to text him, but I don"t have his number.

I can"t exactly text Chasity and ask for it either.

Shit. What do I do?

I walk around his apartment, sit on the couch, and wait. After about an hour, I realize this is his cowardly way of telling me I am nothing but a one-night stand.

All of his sweet words were nothing but lies to get me in bed. I"d heard so many stories from Chasity and the other girls at school, all the same thing about him being a playboy. How he never wants a relationship, just one-night stands and then he disappears.

DeeDee had texted me her address sometime in the middle of the night, so I leave his place and walk a short distance to my friend's apartment. His building looked like hers, because she was in the same complex only two buildings over.

Drake Baron is the biggest jerk in the world and I can"t believe I fell for it all like a naive little girl.