“I’m guilty of getting a little consumed with things I’m passionate about too,” Evan’s dad says flirtily.

Oh my god, Evan Morris’s dad is flirting with my mom. I’ve heard of Morris enterprises, the company Evan’s family owns, I doubt there’s anyone in the state who hasn’t, but I’ve no idea what the company does, or where Evan’s mom is. What I do know is that my mom has no business flirting with a man like Mr. Morris, just like I have no business playing these weird games with Sebastian. These people are out of my and my mom’s league and the sooner we can get away from them, the better.

I open my mouth to suggest an excuse to extricate us both from this house, but a loud whistle from the other side of the table has me snapping my lips back together.

“Time to go,” Hunter says, pushing up from his chair while Clay and Evan follow suit.

“Come on, little bird, we don’t want to be late,” Sebastian drawls, taking my hand and tugging me up.

“I should—”

“Thank you so much for allowing Starling to stay here last night, Ms. Clarke,” Sebastian says to my mother, preventing me again from trying to encourage my mom to leave.

“Sebastian, please call me Cassidy. I’m happy to know Starling has found a boy who takes such good care of her. Miranda, Richard, your son is an absolute credit to you.”

Sebastian’s parents preen under my mom’s praise of him and I roll my eyes. I wonder how they’d feel about him if they knew he’d announced I was his the very first time I met him, got me fired from my job by threatening my boss and then coerced me to get into his car with threats and manipulation.

“Baby, we’re going to be late,” he croons, wrapping his arm around my waist and guiding me out of the room, his grip firm and unyielding.

The good boy grin he’s been using on my mom and his parents morphs into a conniving smirk the moment we’re out of the dining room, but his hold doesn’t loosen as he frog marches me down a hallway and into a garage filled with at least a dozen cars.

“I’m not getting in that car again,” I snap, spotting the Mercedes I was herded into last night parked in the space closest to the shutter doors.

Sebastian laughs and after a moment, the others, who I hadn’t noticed were beside the car, join in. The sound of the four cruel boys mocking me is chilling and a slight tremor runs along my skin, leaving goose bumps in its wake.

“How are you planning on getting away, little bird?” he taunts. “Are you going to run? Scream? Fight?”

“Which option will get you to leave me alone?” I ask, my voice shaking and betraying the strength I want him to hear.

He laughs again, then moves so fast I don’t have a chance to contemplate running before I’m off the ground and hanging upside down over his shoulder.