Page 26 of Drown in You

A thunderous knock on the door makes us jump apart.

When Luke swings it open, four giant men and a tiny girl hover in the doorway. They’re all grinning at Luke, one of the giants barrelling into him for a hug and clapping him on the back. “Missed you, man!”

The one with his arm around the girl’s shoulders nods to me. “You must be the new sister.”

All six pairs of eyes fall on me.

The giant who hugged Luke brushes past him, a wide smile on his face as he extends a hand to me. “I’m Knox.”

He’s equal parts sexy and boyish with his green eyes, wavy hair, towering height, and a sprinkling of freckles across his nose.

“Sienna,” I tell him.

His fingertips trail over the bruise at my temple. “What happened here?”

Behind him, Luke’s temper flares.

“I fell.”

“Hands off, Rockefeller.” Luke’s command makes Knox drop his hand with a chuckle.

Heat crawls up to my cheeks. How can he be this possessive of me? We had sex one time. His friends will get suspicious if he keeps up the jealous-boyfriend act.

“Sienna, this is Wes, Violet, Damien, and Finn.” Knox points to each of them. “We play hockey together. Except for Violet. She’s a puck bunny.”

Violet sticks out her tongue at him and Wes scowls, squeezing her shoulders. “The hell she is.”

Wes is definitely the kind of guy you don’t fuck with. His dark brown hair is mussed and blue eyes glazed, like maybe the reason they didn’t meet us by the front desk like we planned is because he and Violet were...preoccupied.

Violet is adorable with her shoulder-length brown hair and librarian-chic wardrobe. Her smile is warm and kind, and her eyes brighten when they land on the partially open box at the foot of my bed. “Oh my god, she’s a book girl! I already love her!”

“Hell yeah.” I’m a hundred percent sure we’re going to be instant friends. As long as she doesn’t spend too much time with Luke.

“You a puck bunny?” Knox asks. His eyes eat me up, his Cheshire grin warming my belly.

Behind him, Damien and Finn can’t take their eyes off me either. They’re both freakishly tall—all of them are—but Damien has the widest arms and shoulders, his eyes so dark they’re almost black. Finn is leaner than the others, but he could be a model with those devastating blue eyes, sharp cheekbones, and midnight-black hair.

Luke glowers like he wants to kill all three of them for staring at me like I’m the next puck bunny in their lineup.

Maybe this is how I get Luke to stay away from me. Flirt with his friends right in front of him, convince him I’m not interested. Then he’ll get the hint and find some other girl. A girl who isn’t related to him by law. A girl who wouldn’t get sent back home to face the dangers awaiting her if she were to get caught in Luke Valentine’s bed.

So I bat my lashes at Knox. He’s gorgeous, so flirting with him won’t be hard. “I am now.”

Impossibly, his grin widens, green eyes lighting up. But behind him, Luke’s brows sink.

I’m going to pay for that later.

While Juliet and I walk to our first classes in Eureka, the aptly named building that hosts STEM classes, I’m dying to tell her every mortifying detail about this weekend. But I can’t bring myself to confess to every horrifying turn my life has taken in the past seventy-two hours.

Thank god, Luke’s friends managed to convince him to hit the ice with them after they helped me move in. The Devils. That’s what they call themselves, and the name definitely suits them.

Juliet showed up shortly after they left, and I’ve managed to avoid Luke since, but I’m sure that won’t last long. Insanely, he doesn’t seem too keen on letting our one-night stand remain that way.

In the sunlight, the stud in Juliet’s nose glints before we push our way into the building. She nudges me with an elbow. “So? How was the wedding reception? How’s the new family? Are they a bunch of weirdos?”

I groan, following her to the stairs when we spot the line waiting in front of the elevators. “It was so awkward.”

“How evil is the stepmonster?”

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