"Fucking hell!" Fallon shouted from her bedroom, and in seconds, I could hear her thudding footsteps, and then she appeared in the living room, where I was seated on the ground with a bucket of her ice cream in front of me. "I have nothing to wear for tonight!" She lifted two dresses for me to see while I licked at my spoon and stared back at her.

Tonight was the night the runway show was happening, and I had invited Fallon to it. We were five hours away from the show, and I wasn't sure I had something to wear either, but I knew I could always rob Hanna's closet. Not that I wanted to. I was making it my mission to look unattractive now.

"The blue's okay," I told her as I pointed at the dress in her left hand, and when she raised it higher for me to see, I frowned. "On the second thought, maybe you do need a new dress. You feel like going shopping?"

Fallon dropped her hands and walked over to me with slouched shoulders, sitting down on the couch I was leaning my back against. "Maybe, but I don't know. Do you need a new dress?"

"I can work with what I have."

"Are you not supposed to look hot for your delicious man?"

My head snapped up and I threw her a look. "Delicious?" My brows shot up and I scoffed. "If you mean West, then he's not sure if he can make it tonight. He has a case he's working on, so I don't think it matters what I look like tonight." I grabbed another scoop of ice cream and shoved it into my mouth.

Fallon was grinning from ear to ear when she answered, "You know what man I'm talking about, so don't you even dare pretend. West is great according to you, but do you like him? I know for a fact that he doesn't make your heart race the way Rogue does."

I was now regretting confiding in her. "West—"

"–Is not your boyfriend yet. He hasn't even asked you to be, thank god. I like West, but you don't need a man like him, Beth. He's simple and easy, and I doubt he makes your heart flutter. Imagine marrying him. What would your life be like?" I caught her eyes and she was still grinning. "Boring as hell. My grandma said if a man doesn't set your heart on fire, he's not worth keeping."

"That's why she's single," I retorted with a laugh.

Fallon kicked my shoulder with her leg. "Because she married a West and it didn't work out," she disclosed. "Moral of the story is, marry a man like Rogue."

"How did marriage enter this conversation, I wonder." I stretched my legs and wiggled my toes, adding, "I'm twenty-five, Fallon. Marriage is far away from my mind, stop scaring me."

"Didn't you say your best friend married at twenty-four?" I ignored her and she kicked me again. "How old is Rogue again? Do you think he will wait for you? He probably has an endless line of women after him, but he chose you. It's so cute, oh my god. Your ship name will be...." She waved her hand in the air. "Bogue."

I scrunched my nose. "Bogue?"

"You're right. That sounds like a disease." She stared into the distance, then suddenly jumped. "I got it! Reth," she announced with giddiness.

"That sounds like meth. No, thanks." I rose and took with me the ice cream, listening to Fallon's footsteps as she followed me into the kitchen. "Besides, Rogue hasn't landed me for you to be thinking of a ship name." I put the ice cream back into the fridge and turned around to find her standing behind me. I clasped my hand over her shoulder and said, "Why don't you think about....." I made the same air gesture that she made earlier. "Weth or Best." I walked past her.

"Please." She snorted. "You're sick. It won't ever happen," she called as I headed for the door and opened it. "I'm team Bogue."

"Bye, Fallon! Hashtag Weth!" I joked with a wave as I stepped outside her door.

"Hashtag that's disgusting," she yelled right back at me.

I laughed, walking a small distance to my door. I unlocked it and entered my flat, then closed it behind me. Picking up my phone from the counter that I had left behind, I saw Hanna's missed call. I didn't call her back and went straight to my room to make a quick change, then headed out again.

It had rained an hour ago, but the weather was still cold, so I made sure to wear my coat that I zipped up to my chin, then I left my flat. I knocked on Fallon's door and told her I was going out for a bit before I walked outside my building.

I walked around my neighborhood for thirty minutes to think and ease my mind of the stress I was in. While I walked back home, I didn't feel that heavyweight in my head again. As I was getting ready to enter the building, someone pranced up to me. He surprised me when I saw him appear beside me, suddenly having remembered the incident that happened with Rogue. I had become jumpy after that.

"Sorry," the guy apologized when he noticed that he had frightened me. He didn't exactly look like he was going to jump me or kidnap me. He was wearing a delivery company uniform, one that I knew. "Beth Wallace?" he asked. I didn't know how he knew I was the person he was looking for, but I nodded. "Delivery for you. Here you go." The courier handed me a box, then jogged back to his van to retrieve a bouquet.

What's this? Who would send these to me?

"Thank you." I took the flowers from him with a smile.

I was so confused and a little shaky when I walked into my flat. I kept the box and flowers on the table and stared at them, not knowing what to do next. Well, I knew what to do, but I wasn't in any rush to do it. Then I heard my phone vibrate. I picked it up, and it was a text from Hanna with a wink emoji. Now I understood where the flowers and box came from. Hanna sent them to me.

Yanking the box open, I found myself staring at the embroidered forest green dress. The fabric and the embroidery were so beautiful as I brushed my fingertips over it. I lifted the dress from the box and a note slipped out from it.

For tonight. Wear it.

Grinning, I put the dress back in the box and smelled the flowers, then ran back to the kitchen to put it in a vase. Hanna always had the best taste. I hadn't planned to wear something so gorgeous, but I guess I had to go back on my words. I just could not let it sit in the box like that. I was already in love with the dress. I texted Hanna back with a heart emoji and thanks.

At six, Fallon knocked on my door. Together, we did our makeup, and fooled around a bit, drank some wine before we made our hair, and put on our dresses. The dress Hanna got me had some plunging neckline and a short hemline, and stopped below my knees.

Fallon went crazy after I wore it and squealed at me, saying how Rogue would absolutely go bonkers when he sees me in it. It was enough to make me want to take it off, but I remembered we wouldn't be alone. There would be a bunch of other people that I would be too busy with to worry about being alone with him.

By the time we were done, it was after seven. Fallon and I left, heading out to her car. It didn't take us more than twenty minutes to arrive at the venue. I left Fallon to take her reserved seat and went backstage to meet everyone. Everything looked so good and organized. Invitees were pouring in; celebrities, and I even spotted retired supermodels. Erica squealed when she saw me and commented on my dress, then reminded me of the after-party in case I forgot about it.

When the show was about to start, I took my seat in between Fallon and Hanna at the front row. Across from me at the front row, through the dimmed lights, it was then I noticed Rogue, but he wasn't sitting alone. Veronica, the woman whom I hadn't seen in months was seated next to him, and I suddenly felt ugly in front of her. She was so stunning it hurt to look at her. I guess that was why Rogue hadn't noticed me yet. Why would he when he had Veronica by his side? I didn't think it would hurt, but it did.

When the show was over, my gaze drifted off to Rogue and Veronica, who were yet to realize I was bloody seated across from them. Maybe not directly at them, but I was close enough they could see me. After realizing that I wasn't worth looking at, I gave up and minded my business. I never looked back at them.

The after-party was at a different venue, and it had already started when we had arrived. It was Hanna's fault, who had wanted to stop by her house and changed into something more comfortable. I didn't complain, however. I much preferred being late than early.

When we stepped out of the car, Hanna and Fallon were ahead of me as they linked their arms with each other and were talking as they headed inside first. Before I could step through after them, Rogue appeared from the shadows and grabbed my wrist, hurling me away from the door and into the shadows he came out from.

"What the hell is your problem?" I hissed as he pinned me against the wall, where there was no light, and where no one could see us. My heart thrummed so fast, and I couldn't figure out if it was because he had startled me, or it was because he was touching me. "Is this a habit of yours? Dragging women into a dark corner?"

He tightened his grip on me. "You're wearing the dress." The words were slow, each word emphasized carefully, a distant hint of amazement and something warm in his voice.

"So, your problem is with my dress?" Unbelievable.

"You're wearing my dress," he persisted. If I could see his face right now, I would imagine his hazel eyes sliding over mine with lethal calmness. I didn't trust his calmness because I had tasted the things he had kept from me.

Air hissed through my nose. "No, I'm wearing Hanna's dress," I corrected with the same calmness I was receiving.

"My dress."

My muscles tensed and his words scattered goosebumps over my arms. "I think I'd know if I was wearing your dress because you wouldn't catch me dead wearing it."

He chuckled darkly. "Are you sure about that?"

My breathing escalated.

I needed to leave.

I needed to be with the others, not alone with him.

I clamped down on my shaking as he waited for me to say something, but I didn't, and he merely watched me with his deadly poise and sinful eyes. He heard my shaky breaths and could probably feel the beating of my chest, the pulse thrumming in the wrist he still held.

Enough.

"I want to go inside. My friends will be waiting, and I don't think Veronica will appreciate you being alone with me like this."

Rogue stiffened, his body becoming ice-calm. "I see you came alone. A wise decision. Whatever happened to your boyfriend?" he ground out his question. "Did you not invite him because you knew I would be here?"

The monster licked its way up my throat, squeezing...clawing. "He's running late," I said with gritted teeth. "I invited him so you wouldn't have the chance to corner me. You just got lucky, but it won't happen again." My words were like frostbites, aiming to hurt him.

"That's how you want it to be?" he asked, his anger blind to mine. "You know I won't let you, right?" His grip became tighter. "Whatever you think you're doing, I'm advising you against it, Beth." He yanked me against his chest, and I gasped at the heat that enveloped me. "You can't be wearing my dress and entertaining another man. I will tear it off your body and choke you both with it, then let you watch him dangle from it." His voice, like his face, had no sign of sanity.

My anger switched to fear and panic. I remembered who Rogue Slade was, and what he was capable of. He was chaos. Whatever was within him wanted to be let out and inflict its destruction on someone, and that someone was my not-so-boyfriend.

His palm cupped my shoulder and his face came millimeters from mine. "Make your decision. Either you walk in there naked..." His fingernails touched my hand, ever so slowly, up my arm to rest on the hollow of my neck and shoulder. "or you find a way to get rid of your boyfriend. Going home isn't on the table, either."

I felt every word, every threat, and it made me want to combust right there, but even that, I knew he wouldn't allow it. He spoke like he had stolen my choices from the moment I saw him, and how easily he delivered his terms.

This time, I pushed him back and ran for the entrance, making it inside without turning around. Once I was inside, I stopped to catch my breath. I was shaking from adrenaline, and I had to hold on to the wall to stop myself from sliding to the ground. After I recovered, I hurried to the party.

There were about fifty of us inside, most of them were Sinclair and Mogue's employees, the ones who had worked on this project. I spotted Fallon, Hanna, and Erica as they called me over to sit with them at the table. While I walked over to them, my eyes fell on the person sitting across from them. Veronica's gaze was on me now, smiling warmly at me, and I wanted to hit her so bad. She was seated with Sabrina. The chair next to her was empty.

"Where were you?" Hanna asked as I sat down next to her with Fallon at her other side.

"I had to answer a call," I lied. "What were you guys talking about?" My attention was taken away from them when my phone vibrated with a text from West. For some reason, I didn't dare open it. When I looked up, Veronica was still staring at me.

What the hell do you want?

With another glare, I looked away from her. There was still no sign of Rogue.

I was listening to the girls' conversation when someone tapped me on my shoulder. Looking up, I saw West standing over me. He was dressed casually—in jeans, a black shirt, and a dark brown blazer. I rose to my feet, stunned to see him.

"Hey," he greeted, hugging me a little tighter. "You look beautiful."

Pulling away, I patted his arm. "You look nice too." I smiled at him, but I was trying to hold myself back from being shocked by seeing him. "You made time to come," I remarked.

"I didn't want you to be alone, so I decided to come. I can stay up all night and finish the rest of my work later. You matter more, you know." He touched my cheek as if to back up his words.

I didn't know what to say to that. Once we were seated and West was introduced to my friends, I tried not to look around the room for a man I knew would be pissed, but I didn't care. West's presence didn't matter to me as much, but at least it gets to piss Rogue off.

West draped his arm over the back of my chair. "How was the show? Sorry, I didn't make that."

I smiled. "Well, you're here now, so all is fine. You look a little tired." I noticed his tired eyes and tensed shoulders. There were dark circles under his eyes too.

"It's just a case I'm working on...it's important, and I haven't had proper sleep in days."

Now I felt bad that he was here and would be up all night to complete his work for the wasted hours he had spent being here with me. I appreciated that a lot, and I didn't want to be a bitch to someone who would do that for me. I knew I had no feelings for West, but I could at least try and reach those feelings. Wherever they were.

I didn't know what possessed me to wrap my arm around his neck and bring his head to rest on my shoulder with a pat to his cheek, and the moment that I did, Rogue finally came in, and the first thing his eyes fall on was me and West. He paused as his expression grew hard, and I had no idea what West and I looked like from where he stood.

I stilled from his murderous gaze, my blood roaring in my ears as I stared at the monster I had stirred. But I couldn't make myself care about what would come next. I couldn't bring myself to push West away, who was now whispering into my ears, but I didn't know what he was saying because my attention was on Rogue. The anger that he had kept reigned poured from his eyes and body. It bared its teeth at me.

"Rogue!" Veronica called out for him, and it seemed to snap him out of his trance, and then he was walking up to her with a perfect smile on his face, different from the one he used on everyone, and almost as if he was feeling what he was showing.

I swallowed a lump as I watched him take the empty seat next to Veronica. My fingers dug into my palm and did my best to curl away from the anger and jealousy I was feeling, and how much I hated being here—with West beside me, and Veronica and Rogue across from me. I hated it. It was cruel.

West murmured into my ears, "Are you alright?"

I didn't turn around to face him when I nodded, because Rogue was still staring at me, inspecting every inhale, exhale, and every movement of mine. Veronica touched his arm to get his attention. She was showing something to him on her phone, and he smiled and nodded at it, then tapped her forehead. I heard the sound of her chuckle and saw her beaming smile.

Volcano erupted inside me, but I was able to reign it in. So, I turned to West and moved even closer to him that I was practically on his thigh, and half of my ass was on my chair. It was inappropriate, but I didn't care. I was fueled with jealousy that I was capable of doing anything to seek revenge from Rogue. It was a petty move, but I didn't care.

West brought his hand on my thigh and squeezed it, and I could swear I heard a growl from Rogue, but I might be imagining it. From the corner of my eyes, I saw him typing furiously on his phone. I thought I would hear my phone vibrate but it didn't, and my heart sank. I thought he was going to text him, but I guess he didn't care enough to stop me.

"Hey, Beth..." Hanna touched my arm, and West released me to allow me to turn around to look at her. I was now fully seated on my chair. "I love your dress! It looks hot on you. How the hell did you get it?"

I frowned. "What do you mean how did I get there? You got the dress for me, Hanna."

It was her turn to blink at me like I was crazy. "Are you kidding? That's a limited edition dress. Only four people own it in the world. A queen, a princess, and the wife of the president of Russia. The fourth owner is unknown." Then she looked at my dress. "Oh, I guess this might be a fake one, but it still looks good on you."

The fourth owner is unknown.

You're wearing my dress.

My head turned sharply to Rogue, whose eyes were still pinned on me, and the breath knocked out of me. I wasn't wearing Hanna's dress. This dress came from Rogue, which meant I was wearing a very expensive that only was owned by royals and the wife of a president.

Holy shit. I was wearing Rogue's dress. His flowers were sitting in my living room. Even across the table, the tension wrapped around us and smothered me, making it hard to breathe. Making it hard to see anything outside of him. Shortly after the first round of food came, the conversations started to get passed around.

"Mr. Slade, I didn't know you were married. You did well to hide it. How long have you two been married?" Someone asked Rogue, and my gaze slide to him and Veronica. Sitting close enough to read into their intimacy and coupled with the wedding band on Veronica's finger, one would definitely assume they were married to each other.

I stabbed my meat.

"Oh, we're not married," Veronica said with a small laugh. "I guess you'd think we are, but Rogue and I are just good friends."

I snorted loudly. The sound came out at the exact moment the table had gone quiet, so everyone turned to stare at me.