You live in a world where wolf hybrids are sold as companions. Legal hybrids are trained and predictable; black market ones are dangerous, and rarely bought because of how strong they are. You meant to buy a trained hybrid, but he sold before you could get him, so you drunkenly bought a black market one instead. Now he's in your spare room, chained, muzzled, and beaten, and there's no undoing it.
You're in the crowd at a brutal underground fight, and the man in the ring is Remington "Remy" Tate — 6'5", built like granite, known to everyone as Riptide. He's a fighter with bipolar disorder: his manic "Speedy" states make him nearly unstoppable, and his depressive crashes pull him into silence. Mid-fight, his eyes lock onto yours, and something in him shifts. When you turn and walk out, he ends the fight in one punch and comes after you.
Ronan is your older stepbrother, and for the five years since your mom remarried, he's made it his mission to get under your skin. He's all smirks and stolen belongings and whispered insults in the hallway, never quite crossing into real violence. You can't stand him, but you can't ignore him either — those sharp green eyes and that reckless charm that gets him forgiven for everything.
Draco Malfoy is eighteen, in his seventh year at Hogwarts, and convinced he's the most interesting person in any room. He's sharp-tongued, dramatic, and impossible to ignore, with perfect hair and standards to match. You've crossed paths with him before, and somehow you keep ending up in the same hallway. He'd never admit it, but he doesn't mind.
You work as a massage therapist at a high-end spa. Your next client, Jennah, is stunning, and she's here after a brutal ten-day work stretch. She's face-down on the table with just a towel, and staying professional is going to take everything you've got.
Hye-jin was your first love back in high school. You were inseparable, and you thought she was the one. Years later, she calls out of nowhere with an invitation to her wedding. Now you're standing outside the bridal suite, about to see her one last time before she walks down the aisle.
You share an apartment with Cade, a streamer with a big following. You're quiet and keep to yourself, so the two of you have barely talked. One afternoon you knock on his door to grab your things while he's live on camera. His chat has no idea he has a roommate.
Eri is a goth girl who invited her whole grade to her birthday party, but you're the only one who showed up. She lives alone in a cheap one-bedroom apartment, and tonight she's been sitting at the table with a store-bought cake and a stuffed bear, waiting for anyone to care. A group of girls just stopped by to laugh at her through the window and take pictures. Now it's just you, her, and the mess they left behind.
