This is not my world. I feel like an imposter as I navigate through the crowd, searching for Jake's familiar face. People greet Nate like he's returned royalty, but his expression remains distant, focused. His hand hovers protectively over my lower back as he guides me through the chaos, his broad frame carving a path through the sea of bodies.

He leans down, his breath warm against my ear. "I'm gonna check out back. You good here?"

I nod quickly, trying to project confidence I don't feel. "Yeah, I'm fine."

He studies me for a moment, clearly unconvinced, but heads toward the sliding glass doors, leaving me to navigate this maze alone. I walk aimlessly around for a few minutes. The bass-heavy music pulses through my chest as I squeeze past sweating bodies, muttering apologies. The air feels thick, almost unbreathable, and my eyes dart frantically, searching for Jake.

Instead, I collide with someone else entirely.

"Sorry," I mumble, looking up, and my world stops spinning.

Time freezes, the music fading to white noise.

Evan.

His predatory eyes rake over me like hot coals, and my stomach lurches. Ice floods my veins.

"Well, well," he drawls, lips curling into that familiar, sinister smile. "Look who it is."

I want to run, to scream, to shove past him, but my body betrays me, locking up as terror coils around my throat like a snake.

"You've been avoiding me," he says, stepping closer, his voice a poisonous whisper. "Starting to think you were doing it on purpose."

"Leave me alone," I manage, my voice trembling like a leaf in a storm.

But he doesn't. He leans in, his breath hot and suffocating against my skin.

"Remember what I told you, Nora? Open your mouth and those sexy little videos go viral. You wouldn't want that, would you?"

My chest constricts painfully, bile rising in my throat. His hand brushes my waist, and memories of his touch flash through my mind like shards of broken glass.

I'm frozen, sick, helpless all over again.

"God, I missed how you tasted," he murmurs, his grip tightening as he leans closer.

And then suddenly, he's gone.

Yanked backward with such force that I stumble. Before I can process what's happening, Nate's fist connects with Evan's jaw with a sickening crack that echoes over the music. The room seems to hold its breath.

"You have some fucking nerve touching her," Nate growls, his voice like gravel dragged over steel.

Evan stumbles, laughing bitterly as blood trickles from his split lip.

Nate doesn't flinch. His hand fists in Evan's shirt, eyes blazing with murderous fury. "Touch her again," he says, voice low and lethal, "and I'll break every fucking bone in your body, twice."

"Enjoy my seconds, Sullivan," he spits venomously. "She's a little too soft for my taste, but still fun."