Free Secrets & Surrender: Part One by L.G. Castillo

head.
    “I have my days.” I grinned, fighting back the dull ache slowly building inside of me. The skeptical expression on her face made me think of what Bianca had said. Maybe she was right. Maybe Mandi didn’t trust me. I couldn’t give up, not when I was so close.
    “You know, Die Hard is playing at the drive-in. I didn’t know they still had drive-ins. I was wondering if you’d—”
    Bianca’s high-pitched giggles caught my attention. Looking over Mandi’s shoulder, I saw Seth and his brothers. They were surrounded by fawning cheerleaders, who were fawning over them. Bianca was in the center of the group.
    I tensed as Seth placed one arm around her and handed her a cup of trashcan punch with the other. At the same time, Dillon whispered something into his brother’s ear. Alarms went off the moment Seth’s eyes met mine. He smirked.
    Shit!
    My fingers curled into fists. Seth had never shown any interest in Bianca until tonight. By the expression on Dillon and Seth’s faces, I knew exactly why they were going after her. Bianca was going to hate me for this, but the girl was so worried about her reputation she couldn’t see past Seth’s popularity with her friends.
    “Excuse me. I’ll be right back.”
    “Hey! What are you doing?” Bianca cried when I snatched the drink out of her hands.
    “We’re leaving.” I clamped down on her arm, dragging her to the car. I didn’t want to leave, but I had to get Bianca out of here. Maybe if I drove fast I could drop her off at home and get back before Mandi left the party.
    “I don’t think Bianca wants to leave.” Seth placed himself in front of me. I gritted my teeth as I glared into a pair of cold gray eyes. His body loomed over me by at least three inches. He leaned in, the smell of alcohol strong on his breath, muscles flexing beneath his flannel shirt. I stood my ground, wondering how in the world was this guy still in high school. He wasn’t a kid; he was a man.
    “I don’t give a shit what you think. We’re leaving.”
    “Mind your own business, Nic.” Bianca snatched her arm out of my grip. “I want to stay. Seth will take me home.”
    “You bet your sweet little ass I will.” His eyes crawled over her body. “I’ll take you all the way home.”
    I had to admit, being from a powerful family that had money, lots of money, did have its benefits. Fighting a man who looked to be all muscle was not one of them.
    I swung my fist, prepared to knock the disgusting smirk off Seth’s face when out of nowhere, Dillon and Chase tackled me.
    “He’s mine,” Seth growled.
    They shoved me to the ground, and I landed facedown. Quickly, I scrambled up to my feet when a knee pounded into my back, sending a surge of pain down my spine.
    “Stop it, Seth!” Bianca cried.
    Seth laughed as he straddled me, tying my hands behind my back. “Don’t you worry your pretty little head. I’m just welcomin’ your brother to Koppe. Call it an initiation. Get up, Marcelli.”
    I struggled to get out of the ropes as he and Dillon jerked me to my feet.
    “Where are you taking me?”
    “You’ll see.” Dillon smirked.
    I stumbled forward as Seth and Dillon partially dragged me along the side of the riverbank, heading into the dark shadow of Koppe Bridge. When we reached the base of the bridge there was a group of guys in cowboy hats. One of them was taking money. They called out to each other, taking bets.
    “Go to the car, Bianca,” I called to her when I realized what was happening.
    “Let go of him!”
    I groaned at the sound of Mandi’s voice. I didn’t want her to see me like this. She pushed herself through the crowd of gawkers. They whispered amongst themselves. No one wanted to step in to challenge Seth and his brothers. Even the football players, my so-called teammates, didn’t make a move.
    From the corner of my eye, I saw something move in the shadows. Next to Cassie was the cowboy I’d caught her staring at earlier. Although his face was a stoic