Chapter 1

The Boston Conservatory scandal that broke the internet this semester? Kimberly Jordan’s sex tape dropped in the school’s Discord server. The video showed Kimberly in the presidential suite at the Mandarin Oriental. Completely naked, pinned against floor-to-ceiling windows by a tall guy, their bodies moving together as the sounds left nothing to the imagination. When it ended, he whispered against her ear: “Good girl.”

Those two words set the Discord server on fire.

“Holy shit…that’s definitely Jayden Charlemet’s voice.”

“Kim’s got serious game. Bagged herself a fucking trustee! No wonder all that bullying magically stopped.”

“And here I thought she was so innocent. Just another gold-digging slut. Like mother, like daughter!”

Kimberly was knitting Jayden a scarf in her dorm when she heard about it. Her roommate cranked the volume, passing her phone around with a smirk.

“Damn, Kim. You sound like you’ve had plenty of practice,” she drawled.

Laughter erupted around her. Kimberly’s face went white. The half-finished scarf slipped from her hands as she bolted from the room.

She stumbled toward Jayden’s office, desperate for answers. But just outside the door, she caught male voices talking inside.

“Bro, you didn’t leave her any dignity. Got her face so clear in that video she can’t even deny it’s her.”

“That’s what she gets for messing with Jayden’s woman. Little bitch deserved it.”

“Still, man, you’ve been putting in work. Spreading those rumors about her mom being a homewrecker, playing hero with her bullies, acting all devoted. Oscar-worthy performance.”

Phoenix Nirvana: She Pirouetted Through the Flames They Set

“Yo, Jayden,” another voice chimed in – Tyler, one of his frat brothers from college. “When you gonna drop the bomb on her? That the guy she’s been crushing on is actually gonna be her brother-in-law? She’ll fucking lose it!”

Jayden lounged on his leather sofa, tapping ash from his cigarette, his expression unreadable. Mike, his business partner, noticed his silence.

“Getting soft on her? Remember how she got Agatha shipped off for two years? Your girl was practically starving over there. We can’t let that slide.”

At Agatha’s name, something flickered in Jayden’s eyes. He crushed out his cigarette.

“When Agatha comes home.”

“That day happens to be the anniversary Kim’s been counting down to. I’ll give her a ‘surprise’ – make her pay back everything she owes Agatha.”

Kimberly couldn’t breathe. Through the cigarette haze, she stared at Jayden’s cold, handsome face, feeling her heart rip open.

So those rumors about her mom? All Jayden. His protection? His pursuit? Just revenge. The person he actually loved was her half-sister, Agatha Jordan.

She turned and ran. She hadn’t made it far when three dance majors blocked her path.

‘Look who it is – our resident porn star!’ said Brittany, the lead dancer in her cohort.

‘Just left his office?’ sneered Madison. “Ready for round two already?”

White-faced, Kimberly tried to push past but got shoved between them. Then Jayden’s voice cut through the hallway:

“You’ve got five seconds to get your hands off her before I make sure you’re all out of this school.”

Jayden stood behind them, towering and intimidating, his eyes cold. The girls scattered instantly. He reached Kimberly, straightening her messy hair with practiced fingers, tilting her chin up.

Phoenix Nirvana: She Pirouetted Through the Flames They Set

“What did I tell you? Anyone gives you trouble, you use my name.”

His familiar cigarette smell surrounded her, making her eyes burn. The Jayden before her blurred with the memories of him standing up for her countless times before.

After her mother’s suicide, her father Ronald reconnected with his college girlfriend and essentially abandoned Kimberly. Then rumors spread that her mother had been a homewrecker, and that Agatha was the “real” Jordan daughter. As “the homewrecker’s kid,” Kimberly became fair game for everyone. Jayden had stepped in, using his trustee position to shield her from the worst of it.

Last night, on his birthday, they’d gotten drunk and slept together. He’d been different – dominant, pressing her against those huge windows, watching her tremble with nervousness and excitement. In his arms, Kimberly had felt safe for the first time in forever. Found, after being lost for so long.

But it had all been calculated. Every. Single. Moment.

When she came back to reality, Jayden had already guided her outside and into his Audi.

Phoenix Nirvana: She Pirouetted Through the Flames They Set