God. You already told him to meet us there, didn’t you?”
“Maybe. I mean, you’re a little predictable.”
“I will show you predictable.” But she laughed and kissed him on the forehead, no doubt leaving another set of bright red lip marks behind. “Now Logan will be jealous.”
Bailey grabbed a couple of the large trash bags from the utility closet and began scouring the theater for trash. They’d promised to return the theater in the condition they found it, and Bailey planned on making sure they kept their word.
He struggled out the back door with the two huge bags and used the first to prop open the door while he carried the other over to the dumpster. By the time he managed to wrangle the bag that was nearly as big as he was into the dumpster, he heard the theater door sliding shut. He dropped the dumpster lid and it clanged so loudly he jumped. The distraction meant he’d not moved fast enough.
“Oh crap.”
The door had shut, the weight of it having pushed the second bag inside. He could still see a piece of the plastic bag sticking out of the door. He banged on it for a second, but already knew it was a futile effort. The prop room was on the other side of the theater, and no one would hear him from there.
Bailey sighed and began trekking around the building toward the front entrance. No one would hear him if he knocked on the back door, but they should hear him from the front.
The side of the building was always dark and creepy. It didn’t have any windows or anything, as it was the actual side of the auditorium where the shows were performed. It wasn’t Bailey’s first time being trapped outside by the dumpster, but now he wasn’t working for the theater anymore, he hoped it would be the last.
He’d even had them install solar lights out there to help with the darkness, but they didn’t seem to be working, which upped the creepy factor by about a thousand.
Bailey hurried to get to the front, ready to be out of the dark and back with his friends. He’d never been more thankful for them, especially since they’d made sure he knew he was stuck with them. He laughed at how much everything had changed over the last few weeks. Between accepting their friendship and his shiny new relationship with Logan, Bailey’d never felt better in his life.
All of that changed in an instant.
He heard movement a split second before something hit him hard. Pain bloomed over the back of his head. Bailey stumbled into the wall as arms came around him from behind. One hand covered his mouth, and the other held him securely around the neck.
Bailey struggled as the attacker dragged him into the darkness at the back of the theater. When he couldn’t break the hold, his training kicked in. It was like he could hear Logan’s voice in his ear.
Leg back. Duck under wrist. Pivot and push. Run.
And it worked.
Bailey remembered to scream as he ran but only managed to get a few steps away before a hard blow sent him to his knees. A hand on the back of his head slammed his face into the sidewalk, and he tasted blood as he saw stars. His hair was clenched in a tight grip, and then his head hit the sidewalk a second time.
Bailey was so stunned he couldn’t think, and then the pain and panic set in. The attacker straddled him and held him pinned by the back of the neck. Hot breath filled his ear, as well as a low chuckle. “Gotcha.”
The whispered word sent a chill down his spine.
“You reek of wolf, but I can take care of that.”
Bailey screamed, but the attacker cut him off again with another blow to his face. He couldn’t think. He didn’t know what to do. Hands jerked at the waist of his pants, stripping them down to his thighs.
Bailey tried to struggle, but nothing seemed to work. He tried to twist away, but he was manhandled back into place. When he felt a hand on the bare skin of his ass, Bailey freaked, his brain somehow coming back online in spite of the pain and dizziness.
He screamed and thrashed, finally managing to get the attacker off him. He didn’t think. He scrambled to his feet, stumbled over his torn and tangled pants, and screamed as loud as he could.
He was hit once again, and