Bitter (Book One Bittersweet Mess)

The last thing Rae expected was for him to notice her, let alone ask to sleep with her.
Rae Jones has just turned twenty-one and has remained under the radar this long despite living in University City and having a popularity-seeking best friend. But this year, something's changed. She's more daring and uninhibited than she's ever been, so when a Viksen brother provokes her into a one-night stand, Rae accepts. Little did she know that one night would change her world, and Tate Viksen is everything she should have never wanted.

***

He angled his head to one side, reached forward and slid a finger under the thin shimmery chain of my necklace. My breathing hitched from the light scrape of rough skin as his finger brushed my collarbone, and I remembered how they'd felt in other places.

I parted my lips, took in a ragged breath to stare up at him, and he released a thoughtful, "Hmm. I've had to repeat myself a few times with you. Do I make you nervous?"

Yes.

"Don't you trust your neighbor?"

I gave him no response.

"What is it?"

His hand slipped from my necklace and carefully cupped my cheek, a motion so raw it kicked my heart. "Have you heard bad things about me?"

That depended on his definition of bad.

His brows were drawn together, and he blinked in confusion at my lack of responses. He retracted several inches.

"What is it, Rae? You look...afraid of me."

I'm not afraid of you.

I'm afraid of what you'll do to my heart.

I finally spoke again. A brisk, "You're so full of yourself."

**Don't worry this story will not be abandoned and has an ending.**
***Mature with a capital M. Explicit sex/toxic character(s)/drinking/drugs/violence.***