THE BAD BOY’S PRETTIEST PAWN

“You want answers?” he said. “Then step closer.” Against every instinct I trusted, I stepped. Kai’s hand snapped around my wrist, pinning it against his chest. Not to restrain me, but to warn me. “You don’t get to make that choice,” he said softly. “Not with me.” “Then why tell me to step closer?” “To see if you’d obey,” he said. “And you did.” That’s how trouble starts…when the wrong man decides your choices belong to him. *** When freshman Briselle accidentally crosses paths with Kai Thornefield, the untouchable senior with a violent reputation and a past no one dares mention…her quiet college life spirals out of control. One lie turns into a deal. One deal turns into a fake relationship. But nothing about Kai feels fake. He’s dangerous, possessive, and unpredictably gentle. In public, he’s the perfect boyfriend. In private, he’s chaos wrapped in control. What started as blackmail turns into something dangerously real, fading the line between pretense and desire. But Kai’s secrets run deeper than family money. His past is a battlefield of betrayal, loss, and a father who’d trade love for obedience. When jealousy and revenge twist the game, Briselle becomes the weapon everyone wants, and the only person who might bring Kai to his knees.