*Roanne’s POV*I felt the chill of the early morning air nip at my skin as I made my way across the dew-kissed campus, textbooks clutched against my chest. The ancient oaks stood as silent sentinels, watching the throng of students buzzing with the electric pulse of a new day. My thoughts were a tangled web of formulas and essay prompts when Lizzie's voice cut through the ambient chatter like a violin string pulled taut."Roanne! Wait up!" she called out, breathless.I turned to find her, a cascade of auburn hair and hurried apologies, weaving through the crowd. "Sorry, I'm late," Lizzie panted, coming to a stop beside me, her cheeks flushed from more than just exertion."Where were you last night?" I asked, my curiosity sharpening into focus. Lizzie always had an anchor in punctuality—and yesterday, she was missing at the weekly club meeting.She bit her lip, a rose blooming across her face. "I… went out with someone.""Someone?" My mind raced. I wanted details, the kind that

*Roanne’s POV*The mirror reflected a version of me that seemed almost foreign to me—a woman draped in the kind of elegance that whispered of clandestine rendezvous. The black dress clung to my curves, a second skin that was both armor and vulnerability. It represented a new beginning, or perhaps a continuation of something I wasn't quite sure I wanted to escape from.I couldn't help but let my mind drift to Michael, his gaze had been focused on me always, and his words laced with an admiration Aaron never offered. Where Michael's presence was a gentle sunbeam through autumn leaves, Aaron was the tempest—the cold, devouring sea that left me gasping for air.Slipping into my heels, I felt powerful, the delicious height giving me more than just stature; it gave me a feeling of command. I would have to thank Lizzie for convincing me to accept it from her.Knuckles rapped sharply against the door, breaking my concentration. My watch flickered 4:00 PM—too early for Michael, too punctu

*Roanne’s POV*I couldn’t breath, I couldn’t move, my heart was being broken and torn. Aaron moved closer to the peep-hole on the door and then leaned back to me. His breath was a hot whisper against my ear, "He's gone," his voice a sinful promise as he stepped back. The world outside the door might as well have ceased to exist; Michael, the date, my tenuous grasp on self-control—all of it vanished in the wake of Aaron's magnetic pull."Time to have a little fun," he murmured, his words laced with dark allure. His fingers curled around me, an iron clasp that drew me away from the door, away from the world of decency and towards the chaos and repercussions my actions would lead me to.His hands were rough, impatient as they bunched the fabric of my dress, hiking it up until cool air kissed my heated skin. I was bare to him, and the hem of my dress wrinkled at my waist like a discarded afterthought."Please," I whispered, the word barely a sound, but Aaron responded as though I'd s

*Roanne’s POV*The insistent trill of my phone shattered the morning silence. I fumbled for the device, disoriented, the remains of a dark dream clinging to the edges of my consciousness."Roanne! Are you awake? Have you seen it?" Lizzie's voice came through in a frantic burst, crackling with urgency and barely contained hysteria."Seen what?" I mumbled, my voice thick with sleep as I struggled to match her pace, to comprehend the chaos she was spilling into my ear."The university—it's upside down. *The Golden Secret* dropped the bombshell on Professor Grant and the cops... they took him!" Her words tumbled out, each one laden with shock and a thrill that tingled through the line.I shot upright, the last tendrils of sleep snapping as if cut by a blade. The image of Professor Grant, always so composed and pretentious, being led away in handcuffs splintered through my mind, sharp and unexpected. My pulse hammered at the thought, a mix of horror and a dark, sinful excitement at t

*Roanne’s POV*The door clicked shut behind me, and I was enveloped by the quiet of my dorm room—a stark contrast to the chaos that had become my life in recent weeks. My gaze swept over the small space, lingering on the bed that was too narrow, the desk cluttered with textbooks and papers, the corkboard peppered with reminders and deadlines.It was here, in these four walls, that everything had changed. The memories were the only remnant of the night Aaron had been here, his touch full of fire, now tainted with the memory of his possessiveness. I shuddered, pushing the thoughts away."Dating you, however, would forge us both a new image." Michael's voice echoed in my mind, smooth as velvet, yet weighted with an offer that could alter everything. One of his apartments. Luxurious, secure—a world away from this cramped cell where my scholarship tethered me.I paced the length of the room, my steps quick and uneven. The possibility of leaving it all behind seduced me, whispering swe