Pain, abuse, brutality. That was my life. I struggled and stressed; cried until I forgot what tears were. But I worked hard. I clawed to the peak. And then I lost everything. Most people would have shattered. I'm not most people. My dreams are gone, but that's fine. I could have lived this tiny, broken life. I could have suffered in silence. Until I met her: Noel. God, she's so alive. She makes me ACHE and I just... I can't ignore her. So I won't. Noel thinks she can handle me. Survive me. If she knew the truth-could see into my mind-she'd smarten up and run. I'm so lucky she doesn't have a clue. --Author's Note-- This is a dark romance novel, it contains themes of violence and mature situations that could make readers uncomfortable.