by B. B. Hamel
Perfect Monster
BB Hamel
Contents
IMPORTANT
1. Cassie
2. Roman
3. Cassie
4. Roman
5. Cassie
6. Cassie
7. Roman
8. Cassie
9. Cassie
10. Cassie
11. Cassie
12. Cassie
13. Roman
14. Roman
15. Cassie
16. Winter
17. Cassie
18. Roman
19. Cassie
20. Roman
21. Cassie
22. Cassie
23. Cassie
24. Cassie
25. Roman
26. Erick
27. Cassie
28. Cassie
29. Cassie
30. Roman
31. Cassie
32. Roman
33. Erick
34. Cassie
35. Cassie
36. Roman
37. Cassie
38. Cassie
39. Roman
40. Cassie
41. Cassie
Epilogue: Winter
Copyright © 2021 by B. B. Hamel
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover design by Coverluv Book Designs
IMPORTANT
This is the UNCORRECTED, UNEDITED Advanced Copy of Perfect Monster.
If typos bother you, read no further.
1
Cassie
The red stain spread across his crisp white shirt in a wide bloom. I took a step back from the very large and very angry-looking man as he wiped at his chest and groaned. The glass lay shattered into pieces at his feet, sparkling like little diamonds.
That shirt probably cost more than three months of my rent, and the suit looked custom. The pinstripes matched up perfectly at the shoulders, each little detail fastidiously tailored and finished.
“You idiot girl,” he said, still trying to wipe the wine off with his palms, like that would work.
He was a wine-soaked gorilla.
I was tempted to suggest club soda. Or maybe I should just run.
Instead, I kept my mouth shut and kept still.
His date, a pretty brunette with striking lips, thick dark hair and eyebrows, and enough jewelry to make the Queen blush, rubbed his arm and gave me an apologetic smile.
“It’ll be okay, baby. Just a little stain.”
The man shoved her away.
“Do you have any idea how much this cost, you stupid little bitch?” His eyes bugged out, and he stared at me like he was about to rip off my head and drink my blood like a demented Viking.
Which he might’ve, all things considered.
It was a very weird party.
Winter in Sea Isle, New Jersey, didn’t exactly get a ton of tourists, but when Jack, the manager at the Stone Harbor Club, called me up and said some big gathering was going down and offered me a catering job for the night, I had to say yes. Money was always tough to come by in the cold, lonely months.
Though, in retrospect, maybe staying home would’ve been a better idea.
The room was packed with men in expensive clothes and skinny girls draped on their arms like cotton candy. They mingled over drinks, laughing softly to each other, the room’s air was thick with danger and discontent.
I knew men like them. I had distinct childhood memories of men smoking cigars and talking at each other too loudly over poker games and football on TV, the room crackling with a sense of unease and latent violence. It’d been a long time since I’d last let myself get anywhere near men like these, but the rent was due and I liked eating, so I kept my head down and tried to power through.
The ballroom was set up like a wedding, with a dance floor and lots of round tables, but there was no music, and the gathered men seemed more like they’d rather blow lines of coke off a stripper’s ass and maybe kill someone than do the Electric Slide.
Couldn’t blame them. I hated the Electric Slide.
I had no clue what the occasion was supposed to be except that it celebrated a man named Roman and some new business venture he’d started, which sounded great, good for Roman. I wished him the best.
Only I really didn’t want this very large, very angry-looking Italian man to murder me in front of fifty people.
And based on their bored stares, I was pretty sure nobody would come to my rescue.
“I am so, so sorry,” I said, finding my voice at last. The guy’s date glared at him and crossed her thin arms over her curvy chest, saying nothing. I wasn’t getting any more help there, clearly.
“Sorry’s not good enough,” he said, voice dropping into a dangerous snarl. He’d be handsome, if it weren’t for the death glare.
In my defense, it was an accident. He’d been arguing with that girl about something when I walked past with a glass of red on a tray for one of the guests, and he turned abruptly and slammed into me.
Obviously, that didn’t matter now, but still, I was a decent waitress.
I’d only ever spilled drinks on, like, two other customers. Three, max.
“Sir, I’ll get you some club soda, and maybe—”
“Club fucking soda? For wine on a two-thousand-dollar shirt? What the fuck is wrong with you?”
I really shouldn’t have mentioned club soda. I’d known it was a mistake and would only piss him off more. I just couldn’t help myself.
I held up my hands, pleading now. I didn’t want this to turn into a whole thing. I couldn’t afford to lose my job, especially not in the winter when I was barely making ends meet to begin with, and the idea of burning two grand for some rich guy’s shirt made me want to scream bloody murder into my pillow.
“I’ll make it right, sir, whatever you need.”
A dangerous gleam flashed in his eye. “Anything I want, pretty bitch?”
I stepped back from him, heart suddenly racing. The way he ran his tongue over his lower lip was both lascivious and threatening, and I wasn’t a fan of where this was going.
“I meant, financially. I can pay to have it dry cleaned—”
He reached for me, faster than I could follow. My tray clattered to the ground, and the other men didn’t even react, like they were used to seeing waitresses get assaulted.
“Is there a problem here?”
A voice behind me. I was about to hyperventilate from the stress and the worry that maybe, just maybe, this creep would sexually assault me in front of all these people.
Yeah, it felt like that kind of party.
My asshole assailant looked up, and his face instantly switched from rage-induced mania into something more like a very angry child caught sneaking into a forbidden room.
“Roman,” he said, gripping my wrist harder. “This woman ruined—”
“Let go of her, Manzi.”
Manzi, his face very red, released me instantly. I rubbed the aching bone and looked back at the looming figure behind me, then sucked in a surprised breath.
Dark hair, light skin, handsome, cut jaw, and eyes the pale blue of arctic ice. His expression was tightly controlled fury, though I got the strange, distinct sense that he could lose himself at any moment. He was muscular and athletic, and he wore an expensive, sleek suit—not quite as flashy as Manzi’s, but perfectly fitted to his exquisite body.
His eyes drew me in and made me want to get lost. I’d nev
er seen eyes like those on a person before. They looked like a wolf leading its pack. His dark hair was pushed back in a deceptively messy, almost perfectly imperfect style that accentuated his high cheekbones and sculpted brow. His full, pale pink lips frowned and twitched slightly as he stared down Manzi like a bull about to wreck an alley filled with clowns wearing bright red capes.
Roman was gorgeous. I’d seen plenty of handsome men in my life, but Roman was on an entirely different level, like his mouth and eyes and cheeks and hands were built to attract and to please.
Like he was used to giving orders, and to being obeyed. He held himself like a prince, like a king.
He was a honeypot, a poison flower, a Venus flytrap, something beautiful and dangerous all at once.
Terror flitted through my gut as I turned back to Manzi.
He looked down at the ground. “There’s no problem, Roman.”
“There better not be, not at my party. Not when we’re celebrating a business venture that your father worked very hard to put together.”
“Of course, Roman. I didn’t mean anything. It’s only, this shirt—”
“I’ll write you a check.” Roman’s tone was a snarl and a whip.
Manzi flinched. “That won’t be necessary.”
“I insist. Or are you simply looking for any excuse to terrorize this girl?” He finally looked at me—
And his head tilted to the side like he saw something interesting for the first time.
His eyes roamed down along the full length of my body in very explicit judgment, and I felt weighed and measured. Coming from most men, that look would be rude at best, but somehow it felt natural from Roman, like he was used to taking the temperature of a person.
I hoped he didn’t realize that I was burning up.
I stared back. I couldn’t help myself. His gaze commanded respect and attention, and I was instantly drawn toward him, like I was a space rock on a crash course for the moon. I knew instinctively that he was a hunter, that he was a predator with sharp teeth and a strong jaw and a hunger that I couldn’t begin to sate, but my curiosity only intensified under the pressure of his presence.
He was alluring and terrifying.
“No, Roman. I apologize for making a scene.”
“Good. Go now. Don’t bother the girl again.”
Manzi turned and strode away. He grabbed his date’s arm and dragged her with him. She let out a string of curses in Spanish, none of which Manzi seemed to understand, let alone care about, but I was pretty sure they were extremely intense.
At least, I thought so, based on my Spanish 101.
Nobody stopped him as he pushed open the door and the pair disappeared outside.
The remaining men went back to drinking and talking in a low murmur.
“I apologize for my young, reckless friend.” Roman continued to look at me with those incredible eyes, and I felt like a patient on an operating table.
He could take me apart and I think I’d let him.
What the hell was wrong with me?
“It’s okay. It was just an accident.”
“Even still. Did he hurt you?”
“No. I’m fine, really.”
He nodded once. “If he bothers you again, come find me.”
And with that, he walked away and joined the nearest group of men. They greeted him with smiles, though they all seem reserved, respectful—even a little afraid.
I couldn’t blame them.
“Holy crap,” I whispered to myself as I picked up my tray. I returned it to the back, found a broom, and quickly cleaned up the glass shards.
They glittered in the overhead light. I kept glancing over at Roman, the center of attention.
Who the hell was that guy? He’d defused the very angry, very scary Manzi without breaking a sweat, and I got the feeling that Manzi wasn’t used to being deferential.
Heck, none of the men in this place struck me as the simpering type. And yet Roman controlled the room like a general in front of his latest cadets.
I hurried into the back again and leaned up against the wall by the employee’s bathroom, hands shaking. I wasn’t sure if I was freaking out from Manzi manhandling me, or if I was trembling from the intensity of Roman’s attention.
“What the hell happened out there?” I turned as Winter stormed over looking outraged. She was a few inches taller with dark auburn hair and the kind of curves that made most women jealous. Including me. And I knew for a fact that her idea of working out was walking to Wawa to buy three Snickers bars and a cheese-filled pretzel.
Whereas I went for a five-mile run most mornings just to stay in shape. And to quiet the little voice in my skull that kept wanting to go over the same old mistakes from my past, again and again and again.
Mostly to stay in shape, though.
“Did that fucking guy grab you? Jack just told me—”
“It’s okay, seriously,” I said quickly, holding up my hands to try and keep her from exploding. “One of the other guests helped me out.”
Winter let out a sharp huff and slammed herself against the wall next to me. “That motherfucker. Did you see the way he was talking to that girl he had with him? If I were her, I’d stab him in the eye with a fork.”
“I totally believe it. I sort of have the feeling she’s tried that, though. You should’ve heard what she said to him in Spanish as they left.”
“Yeah? Good, I hope she makes him feel like a real piece of shit.” Winter’s expression softened. She was a few years older and lived in the apartment unit below mine. We rented from this nice old lady named June who was happy to lose out on a little extra cash in the summer to have a couple of full-time, dependable tenants. “You’re too passive sometimes, you know.”
“Hey, don’t make me feel bad. I wasn’t the one being a dick.”
She smoothed her hair over her shoulder. “Fair enough. I just want to see you stick up for yourself, you know?”
I forced a smile. “You do the sticking up for both of us.”
“Damn right I do. Any guy talks to my girl like that, I knee him in the balls. No questions asked.”
“Pretty sure that’s not true, but I appreciate the sentiment.”
She gave me a stern look. “You ever need a pair of nuts kicked, you find me. I love you, girl.”
“Love you too.”
She patted my wrist. “Jack says take your time and come back out when you’re ready. I’m gonna go scope out the room and make sure that asshole’s definitely gone.” She pushed off the wall and hesitated. “You sure you’re okay? You look a little flushed.”
I stared down at my feet, thinking about Roman’s ice-blue eyes and the way his lips curled as his gaze traveled down my body—it was strange, like he was both appraising me and unable to look away.
“I’m fine. Really.”
“All right. Take your time. I’ll be back in a bit.” She waved and marched back off toward the banquet hall.
I leaned my head against the wall and took a few more calming breaths, trying to remember that meditation exercise I’d learned on YouTube. The guy with the very soothing British accent called it a body scan or something like that. I started at the very top of my head and imagined the focus of my attention slowly moving down, from the tip of my skull to the points of my toes, pausing to focus on each muscle, each inch of skin.
By the end of it, I almost felt better.
Except then the image of Roman’s hands following that exact same pattern, touching all of me, from my lips down to my breasts down to the soaking wet heat between my legs sent me into another stupid dizzy tailspin and I decided I had to get some fresh air.
I grabbed my jacket from the break room, headed through the kitchen, waved to Chef José, then shoved out the back. The Stone Harbor Club was a little private events space right on the edge of the bay, and the seaweed stench rolled up from beneath the wooden pier that surrounded the building. I walked over toward the railing overlooking the water and stared out at the ge
ntly lapping tide, the marsh grasses waving in the wind. I pulled my jacket tighter for warmth and let out big plumes of white breath, trying not to think about that man again, about that Roman.
It was like he wiped away the darkness of the moment with Manzi. For one second, I felt utter fear, the sort of chest-constricting terror I hadn’t experienced in a very long time. I was sure Manzi would do something horrible if given the chance, and I couldn’t tell if a room full of men would stop him.
At least until Roman had appeared. Then it was all about that beastly specimen.
I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to banish the thoughts. I couldn’t get some stupid, girly crush on a guest, especially not when I’d been working so hard at keeping to myself. I’d moved to Sea Isle three years ago, after the incident, and ever since then, I hadn’t done much dating or really much of anything at all.
I touched my belly where the scar tore me in half, hip to hip.
Winter said I was antisocial and wallowed too much. I said she was right, but I didn’t tell her why. Before the incident, I was an outgoing girl—I had lots of friends, liked big parties, always had a big smile on my face.
The world was great. Sunshine and flowers. Rainbows, ponies, unicorns, and all that crap.
But afterward, things changed.
“Get the fuck off me, pendejo. Vete a la verga, stupid asshole.” It was the Latina girl again, and she sounded pissed. Her voice echoed off the pier and the club walls, and I caught her shadow projected along the wooden slats.