Page 1 of Tristano

Prologue

Looking up at the house from the car, my body shivers.

I don’t want to go in there. How can I?

“It’s time for you to go now,” his angelic voice murmurs.

He’s been patient with me. Letting me sit here watching as the rain pours down. Letting me lose myself in my thoughts.

“How do I move on from this?” I whisper.

He scoots a little closer, opening his arm so that I can slide against him on the bench seat. I cuddle further into the hoodie he gave me. It smells like him. Cedarwood and a hint of mint. It’s calming.

“That’s up to you. You can take this experience and let it break you. Let it own every part of your life until you are a shell of the girl you once were. Or you can learn from it. Take steps to ensure it will never happen to you again. Self-defense classes are a good start. No matter what you decide, I’ll be here for you.”

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll break down and tell them everything? That you’ll get in trouble for what you did?”

He gives me a sad smile. “If telling on me helps you heal, then do it. Don’t worry about me or the consequences I’ll face. All you need to focus on is getting yourself to a better place.”

“I’ll never forget this, will I?” I can feel the tears welling up again.

“No. You won’t. As much as you will want to pretend this never happened, it will still linger in the back of your mind. Even sixty years from now, you will remember what you have gone through. The question is, how will you react to those memories? It’s your choice, but if I were you, I would get a therapist. Talk to someone about what happened.”

“What do I tell my uncle? He will want to know where I’ve been the past couple days. He probably has half the force out there looking for me.”

“You make the decision. Tell him whatever you want. This is about you, Serena. No one else. In this situation, nothing else matters.”

I squeeze against him, hugging him closer to me. “I don’t want to go in there. I feel like we are in a bubble.”

“We are in a bubble, but living here isn’t realistic. You need to go now.”

Pulling back, I look up at him. “Will I ever see you again?”

The thought of never seeing my hero again causes my chest to tighten. I don’t like the thought of that at all. I only just met him, and already I feel like I need him.

He brushes a piece of hair from my face. “I’ll stay in touch. I promise.”

“Good.” I breathe out, making him laugh.

“Time to go now before we get caught.”

I look back out at the sun kissing the horizon.

“Okay.”

Sliding out the door, I turn one last time to look at the man who changed everything.

“Thank you, Tristano.”

Then I close the door and head toward the shitstorm I know is coming my way.

ChapterOne

FIVE YEARS LATER

Dirty bars gross me out. It could be the way my feet stick to the floor as I walk through the room, or maybe the smell of stale beer and body odor. Then again, it could be the way the men eye my body like I’ll be their next conquest.

In their dreams. Tonight, I’m only here for one man.

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