Amanda Gonzalez

Macon is the oldest. Thirty-one. Ex-Marine. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him smile. Army is twenty-eight. A single dad with the most beautiful green eyes. He has no idea who he is, if not a Jaeger brother. Iron will be in prison soon. You’d never think it to meet him. He’s a nice guy, actually. But he can’t stop reacting to everything. Dallas is the one I hate. Twenty-one, cruel, and selfish. He takes and then throws away whatever’s left. And Trace is mine. Or he was for about two seconds. No one can tame him for long. Not that I ever wanted to.

Have you ever been so angry that hitting things felt good? Or numb to all emotions? The past few years have been like that for me. Traveling between fury and indifference with no stops in between. Some people hate me for it, while others are scared of me. But none of them can hurt me, because I don't care about anything or anyone. Except Tatum. I love her so much that I hate her. I hate that I can't let her go. We used to be friends, but I found out that I couldn't trust her - or anyone else....

Kade and Hunter Caruthers. Brothers. Twins. My cousins. In a way, they’re my family. Protective. Indulgent. My best friends. But there was something else there, too. That ever-present whisper that reminded me more as I got older that we didn’t actually share any blood. They used to be inseparable. We all were, but not anymore. I don’t know why Hunter left or why he joined a rival team in Weston—that Rebel town across the river—to stand on the opposite side of the field from his brother, but Kade is out for blood now and Hunter has finally decided to engage.

I have battled my controlling family and won. I finally have what I want most - the wickedly sinful billionaire Henry Wolf, committed to me and within arm's reach most nights. If only it could stay that way. Because now I find myself caught between two titans vying for the Wolf empire, worth enough to make any moral man lethal. And Henry's brother is immoral to the bone. What will Henry do to save what he loves? And will I fall into that category?

I am not the naive, innocent girl everyone expects me to be. Not anymore. Henry has ignited a fire, and I will do anything - defy everyone - to keep him in my life. But the question now is, does he feel the same way about me?

Henry Wolf is a deliciously wicked, sinfully handsome man who has done a very bad thing. Potentially. Worse, he owns me now - every inch of my body and a sizeable chunk of my stupid, naïve heart. And he's made it clear that if I want to keep my job and stay in Alaska, I'm stuck catering to his every whim and wish - both in the hotel and in his bedroom - while I wait for the potential fiery media circus ring that will no doubt drag my reputation into the gutter along with his, should his past discretions surface. I will not surrender to his demands....

Hawken Trent. So polite. So sweet. Such an upstanding young man. A virgin, too, I hear. He never gets naughty with a girl. Probably because Jesus told him not to. And now here he is, trying to be the hero by protecting another girl from me. He calls me a bully. Irrational. Unreasonable. A criminal. He can call me anything he wants, I’ve heard worse. And he can try to stand between me and my money, but he’s never had to fight for food. That rich, clean, school boy doesn’t have what it takes

In fifth grade my teacher set us up with pen pals from a different school. Thinking I was a girl, with a name like Misha, the other teacher paired me up with her student Ryen. My teacher, believing Ryen was a boy like me, agreed. It didn't take long for us to figure out the mistake. And in no time at all, we were arguing about everything. The best take-out pizza. Android vs. iPhone. Whether or not Eminem is the greatest rapper ever. For the next seven years, it was us. She's the only one who keeps me on track, talks me down, and accepts everything I am.

Death walks alongside me. But the reaper is no match for me. I'm trapped in a world full of monsters dressed as men, and those who aren't as they seem. They won't keep me forever. I no longer recognize the person I've become. And I'm fighting to find my way back to the beast who hunts me in the night. They call me a diamond. But they've only created an angel of death.

The Manipulator. I can manipulate the emotions of anyone who lets me. I will make you hurt, make you cry, make you laugh and sigh. But my words don't affect him. Especially not when I plead for him to leave. He's always there, watching and waiting. And I can never look away. Not when I want him to come closer. The Shadow. I didn't mean to fall in love. But now that I have, I can't stay away. I'm mesmerized by her smile, by her eyes, and the way she moves. I'll keep watching and waiting. Until I can make her mine. And once she is, I'll never let her go.