Chapter 3

"How long are you going to stare at that damn thing before you finally give in?" Tilly glared at me as I flipped the little black and gold business card Mr. Fairytale gave me before he left. It didn't have a name or a phone number, just an address. Every bone in my body was telling me that this was a bad idea, but, his kiss, his lips... I wanted more. He didn't even tell me his name, all I knew was what Jesse mentioned, Whitlock. I really needed to remember to communicate better.

"Huh?" I said absently.

I heard Tilly, but the rush of his lips on mine was still rolling through my head, I didn't have any capacity to have any other thoughts. I wanted to see him again. No, I would see him again. Tilly laughed as she fluttered her eye lashes with mascara in front of the mirror, freshening herself for whatever reason; she was already stunning. I glanced in the mirror beside her, my makeup was still to perfection, despite the bump on my head. Thankfully, the head ache was no longer present, maybe the alcohol was my cure.

She tutted. "Esme you have to see him again. If you saw what I saw when he was kissing you… Fuck. I don't even have words to explain that, and I've kissed my fair share of lips."

The dirty thoughts of what Tilly did in her room raced through my brain, adding to my already distracted mind. Sex. Hot, sweaty, sex. I mean, I"d heard about it, seen it in movies. I knew it was something I shouldn't desire. I was to preserve myself for marriage, as that's what was expected of me. What He required. Otherwise, it would be a sin. I always followed the rules, I always followed order.

But I didn"t think I"d have the will power to follow it this time. Not with him. No. His lips on mine were… Heaven. My first Kiss. Granted, I had just as much regret brewing in the pit of my stomach, but the desire overpowered it. That undeniable itch, something deep within telling me I needed more of, but knowing that I shouldn't have.

That's your moral compass, Esme.Huh. Was that what that was?

His words circled my mind, over and over again.

‘With me.'

‘You are the diamond.'

‘With me.'

The more I repeated them, the more flushed my cheeks got, and the hotter my temperature rose. The more the delicate area between my thighs ached. The undeniable pulse at my womanhood. Could it be? Could I have found my Mr. Right? Don"t be stupid, you don"t even know his name.

"Yes I do, I mean, no… but... yes." I could barely mumble the words to Tilly, confused with what answer I needed to choose. My head was spinning in confusion, and it wasn't from the lump on my head. He was the lump on my head.

"Oh, for fuck"s sake. Give me that." Tilly snatched the card from my hands, pulling me from my train of thought.

"Hey!" I hissed, trying to grab it back. She held it high above her head with her long arms, looking at my with her lips scrunched to the side and both brows lifted.

"Mmhmm. We're going, and that's final. But first, I'm putting some of this on you. Next time he kisses those lips, he's going to be covered in your cherry stain." She planted a red tinted shade of lipstick to my lips, the smell of cherry running through my nose as she glid it along them. "Now do this." Tilly swished her lips together, and I creased my brow trying to mimic her action, rubbing the red across both lips awkwardly.

"Wow." I gasped, looking at my reflection again. We"d come to the bathroom after spending the last few hours dancing after Mr. Fairytale left.

"Amazing how the colour of your lips can change your entire look, eh?" She smiled and drew her tongue across her top teeth. "Tilly I… this is too much."

She tutted. "Girl, shut up. No it ain"t. It suits you. Plus, I want to see you two kiss again. I want to see his lips stained from you. So he will never forget you and those voluptuous lips."

Granted, so did I. I wanted that more than what I cared to admit. He left the club with the same tattooed guy from earlier. Jesse seemed to have some kind of acquaintance with him, as he called him Whitlock, and mentioned that he had brothers, causing trouble? The thought unsettled my stomach. Maybe my moral compass was right? Maybe he was trouble? Stupid brain, always looking for problems that were not there.

I lulled the thought, pulling my attention to Tilly, who was glaring at me with her ‘you're off with the fairies again' look.

"Really?" I muttered, tugging at the inside of my lip with my teeth. "Yep. I knew you would get your first kiss tonight, look at you. Hell, even I'd kiss you. But far out girl, I wasn't expecting that."

"Neither was I."

"Maybe he will take you home tonight!" she toyed.

"Tilly!" I hissed, tsking at her sinful words. Though, just talking about it made the spot between my thighs purr like a cat. That was inappropriate. "Did you shave?" she asked with a grin.

"What?" My eyes widened. "Oh dear." She snickered.

"What, Tilly?" My anxiety flared again.

"Tsk. You're hopeless. Let's hope he likes hair."

"Tilly! I'm not having sex with a man I just met. I don't think. I don't know, shit. I have a lot going through my head right now." I couldn't tell if that was a truthful statement or not. Because for a moment, I wanted nothing more than to make love to him. But I pushed the thought aside. Had I lost my marbles for even considering it? Yes. She raised a brow and her mouth parted into an O. "Did you just say shit? Fuck me, girl, maybe you should hit your head more often. I think your other senses came in." Tilly laughed. Amused at her mockery.

Though this time I laughed with her. Because I had to agree, she was right. Something in me was different, the alcohol maybe, or the fact that I had whacked my head hard enough to actually wake up and realise that I was a woman, ready to explore. We left the bathroom to have another round of drinks with Jesse at the bar, not that either of us needed anymore. But I could use something to take the edge off.

I sat myself on one of the stools and listened to Jesse and Tilly talking about make-up and whatever else, waiting for an opportunity to ask him about this mysterious Mr. Fairytale.

"Jesse?" I said.

"Yeah?"

"Earlier, you called that guy by his last name, Whitlock? Do you know him?"

"Oh, yeah the guy she kissed. Wow, you should have seen it, Jesse!" Tilly blurted, fanning herself. "Hmm. You kissed him?" he asked with a concerned tone.

"Yes." I admitted, abashed. Why do I feel ashamed for admitting that? "Jesus." Jesse rolled his eyes, like I had kissed someone I shouldn"t have.

I hesitated before pressing. "Who is he?"

"Yeah, why you gotta say it like that, Jes?" Tilly added.

"You know his uncle owns PUP, right?"

Tilly's face lit up, like Jesse had just told her she won a million dollars. "Princesses Under Pentagrams?"

"Yep." He popped the p. Tilly stood in a flurry, clapping her hands with glee. "Oh my god! I didn"t think. Okay, let"s go. Now! I've been dying to go there! But it"s by VIP entry only! Only the best of the best get in there."

"Bitch, please. You wouldn't last five minutes in there." Jesse playfully scolded, waving her off. "What makes you so sure?"

"Because you're just as slutty as I am. When I say the men and women in there are hotter than the fucking sun, your sweet black arse would be on one of those son of a bitch's dick in thirty seconds flat."

"Hey I like money, what can I say. I"m a simple woman." Tilly flicked her hair, like her vagina was a trophy and she was proud of it. "Tilly!" I scowled.

Jesse went on, a jealous edge to his voice. "Don't forget I own your arse. I've seen you shake that thing around here. They'll be begging for you to work for them. And it won't be in their club, either. The rich mother fuckers. Don't go getting any ideas, ditching me and go working for those motherfuckers." I pushed again, they got off topic. "Their, club? Who"s they? Jesse, Is he trouble?" Did he mean the brothers?

"For you? Yes."

My eyes widened, and I bit my lip. Jesse continued. "Though, anyone would melt you like butter! Look at you, you can barely hold it together after one bloody kiss. Why are you asking?"

I shrugged nervously. "I was just wondering. Because you mentioned earlier about his brothers being trouble. That's all."

"Well yes, they are trouble. Drugs, money, cars, women, the sex parties they have, or so I've heard. And the charity balls, they are rolling in mullah and women. Apparently they own a mansion, but I"d be lying if I said those whispers were true. But, I do know with them, there comes a lot of fucking drama. I'm fortunate to have the ability to keep them away from my club, no thanks to the young lad you met tonight. They never come in here anymore, not since they got their own club, until tonight anyway. As long as you don't go getting that little sniffer nose of yours into any of their business, you'll be fine."

"Oh, ok."

"Caine's the good one. Just stay away from the others. Especially the tall one."

"Caine?" I tilted my head, confused.

A self satisfied smirk turned his lips. "You just had your first kiss with a guy and didn't even know his name?" he laughed and clapped his hands, rubbing them together. "You're a little flirt in disguise, aren't you? Pity you don't want to work here. You'd fit right in."

The nightlife was beginning to boom now that the night had carried on, the warmth of the late spring air shifting through the busy streets. It felt no less 77 degrees, a blissful taste of summer around the corner.

The women in the line up to PUP were dressed to the nines, boasting wealthy labelled frocks, permed hair, and shoes that cost more than our apartment annually. They were dressed a heck of a lot classier than Tilly and me. The men donned tight tailored suits, with pointed leather shoes. Razor-sharp jaw lines, slicked-back hair and buff arms. Like Caine.

"Do we look the part? I feel like we're not dressed good enough." I whispered to Tilly, not wanting to draw attention to ourselves. We looked very non VIP. Tilly laughed, looking directly at my breasts.

"Esme, he's invited you here for a reason. He was well aware of your dress code."

I mindlessly started to wonder off, thinking about the juicy kiss with Caine, Mr. Fairytale. Letting it penetrate my head again.

Penetrate.

What a delicious word. I inhaled deeply, studying the smells that surrounded me, partially because I was trying to see if I could locate Caine"s delicious cologne, but the only thing that I could smell was cigarette smoke and the city of Manhattan. It had taken our cab just under an hour to get from our apartment to Jesse"s, and only a few minutes walk to PUP. I hated the city at the best of times, but tonight was a good cause.

"Miss?" A tall security guard approached us, despite us being almost at the end of the line.

"Y… yes?" I stuttered. Tilly peered around me, grinning. He stood intimidatingly tall above us, his muscles pushing at the seams of his shirt, holding his clip board with authority. He gestured with an arm open, pointing toward the entrance of the club. "Please." His voice was deep, almost condescending. With a cocked brow and a sideways glance, he demanded, "this way, ladies."

The club was full and buzzing. It had a seductive darkness with subtle red luminance, keeping the lights low, giving a sense of seduction and mystery. Very different to Jesse's strip club. The smells of feminine sweet perfume, alcohol and musky notes stimulated my nose. The place was covered with leather-padded walls and mirrors, and the entire ceiling was one gigantic mirror overlooking the tops of the women dancing on the poles. The furniture was clean rich mahogany, with leather and cushion coverings, and the tables were all lit with a candle or two.

No wonder the place was booming. It was stunning.

The girls were not of the shy type; their perky fake breasts were on display like they were in a museum, dollar bills bunched in whatever crevice of their body they could find. These women were outstanding, and I could see why Jesse was fretting Tilly would leave his dump for this place. If I were a stripper, I would too. At least this place wouldn't give you an unknown disease just by touching one of the poles, or girls.

Not that Tilly was disease ridden; she deserved more than Jesse's place. She deserved to be up here. In fact, she was more beautiful than these women. She was a billion dollars more than these million-dollar whores. I studied her face, she was ecstatic, like she had just walked into heaven. I scanned the club, but Mr. Fairytale wasn't anywhere to be found.

"Here." The security guard ushered us to a VIP booth with a gold rope across it. We sat in the seats with grins ear to ear. I felt like royalty. This was nice, different. My eyes drew to one girl in particular, tucked in the back of the club around the corner, waiting for her cue to come on stage. She was a little curvier than the others, almost like me but more toned. A man's voice chimed in over the music and announced her entrance, and the crowd turned their attention and cheered for her. ‘Scarlett'.

The music changed to a heavy metal song ‘Adrenalize Me' by In This Moment. She immediately reeled me in. The short, curvy redhead blew kisses and spanked her bottom as she strutted towards us, taking a spot on the pole opposite our booth. Her eyes teased the crowd as she moved around the stage. She was obviously popular here as the crowd had moved a little closer. Not a single eye strayed from her in the club, except for mine. Interrupted by a waitress that had swished towards us with a bucket of chilled champagne and two empty glasses.

A cold chill tore through my spine again. Shit. Not again. Then a shattered breath spun from my left ear to my right, just like it had done last time. Three weeks ago. I gasped, and in a panic, I threw my head around, but no one was there. Well, no one except for the old guy in the other booth. Panic washed over my face again. Instinctively, I inhaled through my nose. Thank God. No scent of pine.

I swallowed over the lump in my throat and pushed aside my unpleasant thoughts, putting my focus back onto Scarlett. I was instantly mesmerised by her performance. Without missing a single beat, she dropped effortlessly to her knees, her eyes remaining on mine as I watched her dance routine in awe. Ignoring the little flutter that started to dance between my thighs, I couldn't deny the arousal I had for a woman. The little voice in the back of my head whispered, that what I felt was wrong, a sin. But I couldn't stop watching her.

My heart was pounding. There was so much going on.

"You look like you need this." Tilly laughed as she poured us a glass of the champagne. She was just as in awe as I was; the girls at the other club didn't dance like the way Scarlett did. Without any hesitation, the liquid slid down my throat. The entire glass, gone. I needed more. Stat.

Goosebumps rose on my body. That must be some good champagne. Though, I had a hunch it wasn't the alcohol. I pinched my eyes closed, trying to pull some sense into myself. Something caught my eye, but it was gone as fast as it had appeared. Whatever it was wasn't helping with my already panicked mind. I had lost my mind; I was seeing and hearing things. I looked over my shoulder once more, but no one was there. Was he here? Was he stalking me? Maybe it wasn't real, what I saw. Maybe I was in a trance between awake and sleep. Maybe… Fuck.

Where the heck was Caine? He wasn't here. I felt like my head was going to explode. Left in a heavy trance of the man from my nightmare three weeks ago, the lusty thoughts of Mr. Fairytale, and now a ridiculously attractive woman.

I snatched the bottle from Tilly, who was pouring another drink a little too slowly for my liking, and put it directly to my lips, letting a heavy flow of its contents down my throat.

"Jesus, Esme, what's gotten into you? You're so jumpy." She frowned. "I needed a little more than a glass." I admitted, setting the bottle down.

"And I need to come clean with something."

"Sure, babes. Anything." Tilly softened with a worried look on her face. "I've been having, nightmares." I hesitated the last part and she furrowed.

"Oh, is that it?"

"No… well, okay. Listen. I thought I was having nightmares, of a man stalking me. A man dressed like the Grim Reaper…"

My hands started to shake and panic surfaced through my throat. "Jesus Christ."

"Tilly!"

She grimaced. "Sorry, go on."

"Well, three weeks ago. I woke up from my nightmare, and he was real. In my room."

"Girl, you"re more drunk than I thought." She narrowed her eyes at the bottle.

I sighed. "I knew you wouldn't believe me."

"Wait. You're being serious? Someone broke into the apartment? Why didn't you tell me? Esme, this is serious!" I looked around again, mindlessly. I feel that was something I did a little too often now, looking over my shoulder, hyper aware of my surroundings. No matter where I was. Tilly repeated. "There's no one there, Esme. No one"s even looking at us. Is that why you've been so weird lately? Honey, I think you're imagining things. You're safe with me anyway."

Tilly was right, maybe I was imagining it. Hopefully the buzz from the alcohol would hit me again soon, and maybe I'd mellow out again. It felt good to get that off my chest though. A voice called from somewhere near me. Startling me.

"Looking for me?" Caine slid into the booth's seat next to Tilly, looking directly at me. Tilly playfully bounced her eyebrows at me and mouthed, ‘you're getting lucky tonight'. I scoffed but split into a smile, and my cheeks flushed. He was energized, buzzing on cloud nine. He drummed his perfectly manicured hands on the table. An instant wave of release and calm washed over me as I locked eyes with him.

My gosh, this man was ridiculously good-looking. I forgot every train of thought. I couldn't even put something together to say to him without a brain to mouth malfunction. That's what he did to me.

"Hi me." I stammered.

He chuckled and tilted a brow, humoured by my remark. His icy blue eyes were glistening and playful. "Caine." He exclaimed.

"Hello, Caine." I already knew his name, but it was nice to hear him finally introduce himself. I could listen to him say his name all day, though I'd prefer to hear him say mine.

"Hi… little diamond." he flirted. There they go again, the butterflies, fluttering so hard they feel like they're about to fly out of my mouth. Fudge.

"This place is…" not knowing what else to mutter out between Scarlett making me flushed, then Caine bringing on more arousal that I definitely didn't need to act on. Panic and onset fear from my imaginary or real stalker or whatever the fuck was at my window in my nightmare, buzz from the alcohol, maybe a mild onset concussion. Who knew what else began streaming through my head. Shambles. That's what!

I cleared my throat. "Nice… We've never been here before." I finally said. Small talk was all I could offer at this point.

"I know. I'd know if a girl like you ever set foot in here. But now that you have, welcome. Anything you desire is yours." He stared into my eyes with the same hunger as before. And I was happy to return the gaze. A very tall, skinny, young and absolutely gorgeous model looking man in a slick black leather jacket, and a motorbike helmet in his hand slipped his way into the booth next to Caine, immediately glaring at Tilly with a smirk before turning to face Caine. I had to crane my neck to get a good look at him, he was insanely tall. He must be at least six foot seven, or taller. He was huge. There was a red flag in my head, something I couldn"t quite put my finger on.

"Brother." Caine muttered to him, clearly trying to keep his voice level, but I could detect a hint of annoyance. In the corner of my eyes, I could see Tilly mentally drooling. Crap, brother? "The tall one." He was trouble. He looked like trouble. Red flag. But shit he was hot.

"Who's this?" He creased his brow, and his tongue darted across his lips in a way that made it a little too obvious that he was eating me with his eyes. He was no different than the cocky idiots at school, they ran around like they owned the place, with their cool swagger attitude, the arseholes, and yet girls seem to fall for it every time. I'd give it thirty seconds, like Jesse said.

"This is Esme. Esme, this is Damon. Damon, Tilly. Tilly, Damon." Caine introduced.

"Wanna go get a drink, babe?" Damon persuaded Tilly, and she didn't need convincing. She was only half a blink away from pulling her panties off there and then. She immediately hopped up from her seat. "Fuck yes, let"s leave these two in peace."

"Wait…" I wailed, catching my breath as it was trying to leave my chest. "What about what Je-" she cut me off.

"He"s not my dad. I can do whatever I want."

She turned on her feet with Damon, I had to speak a little louder before she disappeared from my site "Don't go far. And don't do anything stupid." I knew she would, but I had to tell her not to anyway. Jesse said he was trouble, though trouble was her favourite type of man. I rolled my eyes, and in a blink, she was gone.

"Jesus, that wasn't even thirty seconds." I muttered under my breath.

Caine chuckled. "Thirty seconds?"

"Oh… Umm. Nothing." I didn't realise I"d said that out aloud "just something someone said earlier."

"Ahh, Jesse?"

"Yeah, he said you lot were trouble." I admitted.

"Did he now?" he laughed through his nose. "Trouble… The only trouble I see here is you."

"Me?" I snapped. I was far from it. "Yes you, little diamond."

"I'm not-" I sighed.

"Look at you." He said and licked his lips. I squirmed in my seat, seeing the hunger in his eyes grow by the second. "I want you. Is that so hard to understand?"

"Yes, it is." I flushed, averting my gaze.

"I know you want me just as much as I want you."

"How do you know?"

His words fell from his lips like liquid silk. "Because I can smell it on you."

Oh my god, did I smell bad? I instinctively turned my nose to my shoulder and smelt for B.O. There was nothing other that the perfume Tilly spritzed on me before we left Jesse's club.

Caine laughed deeply again. "No, not there."

My lips parted for my gasp. I could feel the temperature of my cheeks burning against my skin. Granted, the alcohol gave me a wicked buzz, but this man sent me in a mindless fuzz. Like I could perish away at any moment. How did he know about the moisture between my legs? And it had a smell? Crap crap crap. I had to look anywhere else but him. I couldn't catch my breath, I needed air. This was a bad idea.

He added with a dangerous smile. "I told you, I like diamonds. And by I, I mean we."

My eyes widened. Panic kicked me into overdrive. We? My body was screaming at me. Get out get out get out. I scanned the club for Tilly, I had completely lost sight of her and Damon. No doubt she already had her dress hiked up somewhere, in the bathroom maybe. "Excuse me, I need to use the restroom." I hastily ushered from my seat and scampered off to look for it, locating it the other side of the club. Tilly wasn't here. I shakily pulled out my cell from my clutch and dialled her, locking myself in one of the cubicles. No answer. I tried again. No answer. I realised I had a missed call and a voice message from Tilly five minutes ago. She was yelling in a panic and someone was laughing in the background, there was another male"s voice as well but I couldn"t make out what was going on. My heart pounded; her destressed voice echoed like she had called me in an alleyway.

"Esme, get the fuck out. NOW! Esme! RUN. He"s here!" The sound of struggling and whimpering crackled through the speaker. "No! NO!" Tilly howled again and without warning, the message ended. My heart swelled into my throat, freeing tears from my eyes. This was bad. Really fucking bad. He was here. Fuck, now I was here alone. Jesse was right. So was my moral compass. I punched in 911 in my phone, but it dropped out. The screen on my phone turned pitch black, and the dreaded red battery icon lit up.

"Shit" I hissed at my phone. It was fucking dead.

I had used my entire battery while doing my assignment at school today, and I didn't think to charge it before coming out tonight. FUCK. I peered out the bathroom door, seeing Caine was still sitting at the booth, tapping away on his phone. I needed to think of a way out, but there was no way I could fit in the windows here. I needed to somehow get to the main doors without him seeing me. I ducked down with my clutch covering the side of my face and ran to the door. By the time I had gotten out tears were streaming down my face and my heart felt like it was about to climb out of my mouth. I needed to find someone to help me. I needed to find Tilly, but not alone.

Not a single soul was walking the streets. I kept my pace on the footpath, looking for a cab, but it was quiet, too quiet. The streetlights above me flickered, and the sound of heavy footsteps followed me. My breath left my chest and I turned, no one was there. I started to jog, to my best ability in heels, mindlessly heading back to Jesse's club. But with each step I took, another one followed. I turned to look over my shoulder again and suddenly my body slammed right into a solid force, making me ricochet onto the concrete walkway, falling hard straight onto my arse. My head throbbed at the sudden blow of pressure.

Peering up through clouded vision from running mascara and tears, I sniffled. A blurred shadow merged into the night sky before me. He was well over six feet tall. I squinted to focus my eyesight, shuffling backwards in a panic. I gulped hard, seeing that his face was covered by a haunting metallic mouthless mask and mesh covered eyes, and large coiled horns perched from the top of the mask. I had lost the entirety of the air in my lungs. Another shed of tears fell, one after the other following the last. He panted and clenched his fists, crouching beside my head. Revolt riddled all over him. He was shirtless, his skin painted all black and was dressed in a thick, black frayed cape. It was then, as he hovered over me, that his scent intoxicated my nose.

The smell of pine, blood, and musky moisture entwined with another smell. Something like rotting flesh. I knew that smell anywhere.

The shadow man.

His unsteady, angered breath hitched under the mask and the horns glistened under the street light. He growled, a sound of rage and something else I couldn't put the name to. I bellowed a terrorised scream. But no one was around to help, and by the looks of him, no one would if they could.

My stalker had me trapped. And I was alone with him. Right where he wanted me.