Vulnerable Read online

  Outstanding praise for Mary Burton and her novels!

  COVER YOUR EYES

  “Will keep you up all night reading.”

  —The Parkersburg News & Sentinel

  “Burton takes the reader on another of her high-speed roller-coaster rides.”

  —BookReporter.com

  YOU’RE NOT SAFE

  “Burton once again demonstrates her romantic suspense chops with this taut novel. Burton plays cat-and-mouse with the reader through a tight plot, with credible suspects and romantic spice keeping it real.”

  —Publishers Weekly

  “Serial killers, vendettas, tortured souls and romance are the main ingredients in You’re Not Safe. Beware! As one of Burton’s main characters might say, she has all kinds of tricks up her sleeve.”

  —BookReporter.com

  “Mary Burton is one of the best romantic thriller writers around.”

  —The Pilot (Southern Pines, North Carolina)

  “Burton really has a way with plot lines and her delivery is flawless. You’re Not Safe carries just the right amount of suspense, creepiness and romance, that when mixed together, creates a satisfying mystery with a shocker of an ending.”

  —FreshFiction.com

  Please turn the page for more rave reviews!

  NO ESCAPE

  “A thrill a minute . . . there is no escaping the fact that with No Escape, Mary Burton delivers again.”

  —The Jefferson County Post (Tennessee)

  THE SEVENTH VICTIM

  “Dark and disturbing, a well-written tale of obsession and murder.”

  —Kat Martin, New York Times bestselling author

  “Burton’s crisp storytelling, solid pacing and well-developed plot will draw you in and the strong suspense will keep you hooked and make this story hard to put down.”

  —RT Book Reviews

  “A nail-biter that you will not want to miss. Terrifying . . . it keeps you on the edge of your chair.”

  —The Free-Lance Star (Fredericksburg, Virginia)

  BEFORE SHE DIES

  “Will have readers sleeping with the lights on.”

  —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

  MERCILESS

  “Convincing detective lingo and an appropriately shivery murder venue go a long way.”

  —Publishers Weekly

  “Burton just keeps getting better!”

  —RT Book Reviews

  “Terrifying . . . this chilling thriller is an engrossing story.”

  —Library Journal

  “Mary Burton’s latest romantic suspense has it all—terrific plot, complex and engaging protagonists, a twisted villain, and enough crime scene detail to satisfy the most savvy suspense reader.”

  —Erica Spindler, New York Times bestselling author

  SENSELESS

  “Stieg Larsson fans will find a lot to like in Burton’s taut, well-paced novel of romantic suspense.”

  —Publishers Weekly

  “This is a page-turner of a story, one that will keep you up all night, with every twist in the plot and with all of the doors locked.”

  —The Parkersburg News & Sentinel

  “With hard-edged, imperfect but memorable characters, a complex plot and no-nonsense dialog, this excellent novel will appeal to fans of Lisa Gardner and Lisa Jackson.”

  —Library Journal

  “Absolutely chilling! Don’t miss this well-crafted, spine-tingling read.”

  —Brenda Novak, New York Times bestselling author

  “A terrifying novel of suspense.”

  —Mysterious Reviews

  “This is a story to read with the lights on.”

  —BookPage

  DYING SCREAM

  “Burton’s taut, fast-paced thriller will have you guessing until the last blood-soaked page. Keep the lights on for this one.”

  —RT Book Reviews

  “A twisted tale . . . I couldn’t put it down!”

  —Lisa Jackson, New York Times bestselling author

  DEAD RINGER

  “Dangerous secrets, deadly truths and a diabolical killer combine to make Mary Burton’s Dead Ringer a chilling thriller.”

  —Beverly Barton, New York Times bestselling author

  “With a gift for artful obfuscation, Burton juggles a budding romance and two very plausible might-be perpetrators right up to the tense conclusion.”

  —Publishers Weekly

  I’M WATCHING YOU

  “Taut . . . compelling . . . Mary Burton delivers a page-turner.”

  —Carla Neggers, New York Times bestselling author

  “Creepy and terrifying, it will give you chills.”

  —RT Book Reviews

  Books by Mary Burton

  I’M WATCHING YOU

  DEAD RINGER

  DYING SCREAM

  SENSELESS

  MERCILESS

  BEFORE SHE DIES

  THE SEVENTH VICTIM

  NO ESCAPE

  YOU’RE NOT SAFE

  COVER YOUR EYES

  BE AFRAID

  I’LL NEVER LET YOU GO

  VULNERABLE

  Published by Kensington Publishing Corporation

  VULNERABLE

  MARY BURTON

  PINNACLE BOOKS

  Kensington Publishing Corp.

  www.kensingtonbooks.com

  All copyrighted material within is Attributor Protected.

  Table of Contents

  Praise

  Also by

  Title Page

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  EPILOGUE

  Copyright Page

  PROLOGUE

  Friday, September 29, 6:50 P.M.

  Nashville, Tennessee

  Elisa pressed up against a tree, her round curves scraping against the bark. Her eyes warmed with heat and longing as if she couldn’t believe anyone wanted her with such intensity.

  “I can’t believe I’m blowing off study group to do this,” she breathed. “You make agreeing so easy.”

  It was easy to trace a calculated hand up Elisa’s arm and over breasts that weren’t very remarkable. “You’re so hot.”

  As dark sexual sensations sent tension shuddering over Elisa’s plain, square face, faint thoughts of reason chased after it, tugging her lips into a frown. “I must be insane to follow a stranger into the woods. A few conversations in the coffee shop don’t make us friends.”

  “Are you really looking for a friend or do you want something hot and dangerous?” A slow, practiced sexy smile always made them forget their worries.

  “Hot and dangerous,” Elisa breathed.

  “You’re so beautiful. You have an energy that’s so hard to resist.”

  There were so many Elisas in the world. They were desperate for touch. Desperate for a life with a thrilling excitement that reached beyond work and weighty goals. Desperate to be seen.

  Their desperation made them so ripe for the picking. So easy to pluck out of their everyday safe lives. So easy to convince that a walk on the wild side was their chance to create a new incarnation. To believe thi
s was her chance to prove she was cool. Reckless. Could take chances. Be spontaneous.

  A kiss at the hollow of Elisa’s neck had her moaning and closing her eyes. She was drunk with desire. Her head tipped back against the tree and a brush of a hand over her breasts hardened her nipples into jutting peaks.

  “Do you want me to squeeze them?” The warm whisper brushed Elisa’s ear. “Do you want me to suck them?”

  “Yes.” The word exploded free as if she now had no control of her own mind.

  “Show me. Show me.”

  With trembling hands, Elisa reached for the buttons of her shirt and frantically unbuttoned them. In her haste, one button popped and skittered to the ground. She peeled back the folds of her very sensible cotton shirt and revealed a pink lacy bra cupping unremarkable C-cup breasts. A small pink bow frantically clung to the stretch of lace banding under Elisa’s cleavage, looking as awkward as she did at her little table in the coffee shop.

  “Very nice.” Forceful hands pinched a nipple hard enough to make Elisa wince.

  Elisa’s eyes opened, the pain slicing at the edges of the mindless desire clouding her reason. A whimper tumbled over her lips, but she didn’t complain. Her kind never complained or made waves when anyone paid the slightest attention for fear harsh words would chase away what little attention they received.

  A gentle kiss on the stinging, reddened nipple nudged away the clouds of worry. “Nice. So hot.”

  “Really? I’m hot?” A pathetic hope clung to the words as her voice rasped over lips painted a cherry red that made her pale skin look pasty white.

  “Yeah. Hot.”

  Tears moistened muddy brown eyes. “No one has ever said that to me before.”

  Ah, there it was, the sign that this girl would do whatever was asked of her in this moment because she was so grateful. Long strong fingers rested at the hollow of Elisa’s neck as her pulse thrummed a crazed beat.

  “You’re nervous.”

  “Yes.” She was so blinded with wanting. Her voice melted into a soft moan. Scents of a spicy perfume mingled with the musk of the desire dampening her lace panties.

  “You don’t have to be nervous.”

  Elisa lifted her breast, silently begging for more touch. “I can’t help it. God, I want this.”

  Soft, seductive laughter rumbled. “I can smell your fear. Your sex.”

  She moistened her lips, tasting the cherry flavor of her lip gloss. “You can smell it?”

  “Super sexy.”

  Even white teeth nipped her earlobe and sent a visible shudder through Elisa. “You’re wet.”

  Self-consciousness sent a rush of heat up her face. “I can’t help it.”

  “I can stop if you want.”

  Energy pulsed. Hummed. The press of fingers to her moist center had Elisa hissing in a breath. Slow circular motions sent the young woman’s eyes rolling back in her head as the desire rushed and threatened to knock her over.

  The fingers stopped moving in the practiced caress and rose to Elisa’s lips, teasing them open until she sucked.

  “Don’t stop,” Elisa said.

  “I’m not even close to stopping.” Strong hands cupped Elisa’s throat and squeezed gently at first.

  “Is it going to hurt?” The blurted words stumbled past Elisa’s lips before they could be censored.

  “Do you doubt me?”

  “No. No. I just thought . . .”

  A soft chuckle rumbled. “It’s okay that this is your first time. You don’t need to pretend with me. I like knowing I’m the first.”

  Elisa searched his face with her moist brown eyes and, finding no hint of judgment or censure, she eased back against the tree.

  “I’m going to make you so hot, I’ll slide right into you and you’ll want all of it.”

  “I want to feel hot. Sexy. Like the other girls in college.”

  “You are so much better than those girls. Most of them come from money and have had it all handed to them. You’re smart. Different.”

  “I want to be transformed.” Elisa’s words rushed past her lips as if she sent a request to the heavens.

  “You will be.” Again, silken words brushed over Elisa like a caress as the sun hung lower on the horizon, pulling with it the remnants of the day’s light. Shadows bathed the woods around them, creeping closer with each second. “It’ll be like nothing you’ve ever experienced before.”

  Strong fingers gripped tighter around Elisa’s neck, sending energy through both the seducer and the seduced. Skin tingled. Thrills grew as the pressure increased. So dangerous. So fun to enjoy such utter control.

  Elisa closed her eyes, releasing the reins held most days in a white-knuckled grip. She wanted to be dominated. She wanted to be owned. Mind. Body. And spirit.

  When the pressure constricted her airway ever so slightly, the first flickers of doubt sparked. Ah, there it was—the fear, which was far more intoxicating than sex.

  “Feels good, doesn’t it, baby?” Grinning, the seducer squeezed harder, cutting off all air. The white hot desire blurring Elisa’s thoughts cooled as quickly as molten metal plunged into ice water. Common sense elbowed past the dark cravings as she shook her head and raised her hands to the still tightening grip.

  “Stop,” she croaked.

  Pain and fear collided in Elisa, driving more energy and determination into her hold.

  “Stop.” The word strained to be heard as she dug nails painted a bright purple into ribbons of muscles streaming up powerful forearms.

  In these moments, with their bodies joined in such an intimate embrace, their thoughts connected. Elisa, who had so desperately wanted a challenge more physically thrilling than math problems or debate team practice, wanted now nothing more than to break free and scurry back to the safety of her little house. She wanted to breathe. To live.

  Malice dimmed all traces of humanity, and opened the abyss now hungry for fear, pain, and panic. “Fear is part of the fun, baby. Fear shows us we’re alive.”

  When Elisa’s breath caught in her throat and couldn’t pass to her lungs, she struggled with a renewed energy and then drew up her knee and drove it with a desperate force, into bone and sinew.

  Anger rocketed, stole breath and strength, and the deepening hold slackened. “Fucking bitch!”

  Oxygen rushing into her lungs, Elisa gobbled it up as she raised trembling fingers and shoved back hard. Her fingers pressed to her bruised neck, she pushed away from the tree and stumbled forward before righting herself and sprinting toward the narrow path that cut through the thicket of woods.

  “You can’t leave yet, Elisa!”

  Screaming, she tripped over a root, bit her lip hard, and nearly tumbled before she caught herself. Lungs filling and refilling with a wheeze, she hurried faster and faster down the path toward Percy Warner Park’s main road.

  “You won’t get away from me, Elisa. I know the woods too well.” Jogging now under the light of the full moon, it was easy to follow Elisa’s panicked footsteps thundering down the path.

  “Wondering where the road is Elisa?”

  Branches cracked and snapped, fusing with her cries and prayers. “I know you’re wondering where we are in the park. Let’s see, we drove up that main road just a half hour ago and parked in the lot before I kissed you on those lush lips and led you to the entrance of the woods. Thirty minutes ago excitement and anticipation tingled your skin as you gave me just a peek at those panties and bra you bought just for me.”

  “Leave me alone! I don’t want to do this anymore.” She sobbed, sucking in her breath as she raced faster.

  “You aren’t scared, are you? You know I would never hurt you. This is supposed to be fun for the both of us. I want you so bad, baby.”

  As night squeezed the last of twilight from the trail, tree branches and briars reached out like specters. Their thoughts rejoined this time as hunter and prey. The roar of a truck engine told them both the road was close. A yelp escaped Elisa’s lips as she ran faster. Sh
e was calculating the distance to the road. Could she catch the attention of that driver? Would she be saved from the nightmare that had ensnared her?

  Elisa could flag down a car and then in a blink she would escape. And the plans would be ruined. That wouldn’t work at all.

  “Elisa!” Her name sounded as twisted as the dark bent branches. “Elisa! Don’t be afraid of me. I don’t want to hurt you! I want you, baby.”

  The woods grew silent, swallowing up the little fawn who was, no doubt, clenching her mouth shut and swallowing her cries.

  Ahead, a fallen log lay across the path and to the right its large rotted stump was encircled by a pile of thick branches. Had she burrowed those purple nails into the dirt, clawing and scraping and hoping the earth would swallow her up?