Chapter One
Claudia
You can’t hide, Claudia. I will always find you.
Claudia ignored the dark whisper at the back of her mind and laughed as she sat with her friends at the nightclub. The place was bouncing and vividly alive, echoing with its own heartbeat, filling everyone with its pulse.
But his words still echoed in her mind.
In her own way, Claudia had become alive lately. Her personality had been awoken by an experience she had kept secret. Her girlfriends noticed her newfound zest for life and now wanted to include her in their activities, instead of shunning her as a solitary soul with nothing to offer.
It had all changed the night she met him.
“I need another drink. Be right back.” Claudia walked toward the bar and ordered an apple martini. She looked idly around as she waited, noticing an attractive man looking her way. Her façade of shyness peeled away and the flirtatious inner slut took over. With one slight twist of her lips she caught his attention. She also noticed him signaling to the bartender that he was buying her drink.
Then he picked up his glass and held it high as if to toast her. She responded and smiled.
She was cookin’.
She sipped, not wanting to seem too eager. Her eyes scanned the club and froze as her gaze clashed with a reddened, glowing stare.
“Oh fuck.” She spun around, tense and suddenly terrified. Her thoughts whirled as someone pried open her subconscious mind.
He was there.
Sitting in the corner. His gaze sliced through the smoky air, glaring straight into her soul.
She felt the instant wetness between her legs. This man made her lose control with a simple look.
Claudia had her share of worthless relationships. Men would come and go, usually before she did. But this man…he was different.
She covered her eyes with her hand for a moment, and shivered as a cocoon of warmth enveloped her. He was invading her mind again. She was helpless to stop him—his voice sounded silently within her brain.
She heard him as if he were standing right beside her. I told you that after you let me in, your soul belongs to me.
“Don’t… I said no.” Her eyes closed tighter as she whispered aloud, but the voice continued to beckon her to his needs. Carnal needs. Sexual urges with boundless pleasure.
Her long hair fell around her face as she bent her head downward, unable to avoid the source of this dark craving.
A tumbling wave of sensation caressed her spine, quickly followed by a chill that made her moan. She grabbed the bar and gasped, feeling a hot clamp on her wet pussy. Like the strong hand of a man clasping her body, it made her shudder and wove fear into her heart.