Helen. What a sweet name for a girl who is anything but.

The first time I laid eyes on Theo Whitlock, I chased him and his frat boy friends with a bat.

I’m no white knight.

I’m broke. He’s rich. I destroyed his car. He chooses not to rat me out.

I was never supposed to go to college, but especially not one like Savage U, where only the wealthiest need apply. One might call this a lucky break, only I don’t feel so lucky with a drug dealer breathing down my neck, and a gangster threatening to burn my house down.

You have a face that could launch a thousand ships.

Theo and I don’t make sense, but being with him feels good, and I need more than my books and classes to distract me from the chaos and violence in my life.

I know you’re my good girl. Aren’t you, Helen? Tell me.

We’re casual. No complications. We have to be. I’m keeping secrets, and I have a feeling behind Theo Whitlock’s twinkly blue eyes is a whole world of darkness.

Do you think about me?

Too much…

Did I hurt you?

He will…if the other savages don’t get to me first.

Make no mistake, Zadie Night, I am the bad guy here.

The first time I laid eyes on Amir Vasquez, he held me hostage in my dorm.

You made me a promise.

I swore to myself my second year at Savage U would be different from the last. No more hiding from things that go bump in the night. I’m dating now. Making friends. Living my life.

But then someone starts leaving me notes and whispering my name in the dark, scaring me right back into my shell.

Are you my pet?

I’m shy and soft. Amir is dominant and hard. He stole a kiss once, and then he left me.

I should stay far away from him. But you know what they say about the devil you know…

Do I own you?

Amir will protect me, but not without cost.

I’m his, to do with as he pleases.

He thinks it’s a punishment.

But what he doesn’t know is I haven’t stopped thinking about him since he was my captor.

No one’s going to hurt you.

I’m safe from harm if I’m with him, because he’s the biggest bad on campus.

Show me your whole universe.

And somewhere along the way, he became my haven, too.

You should be scared of me.

I can’t believe I’ve fallen for the villain.

You need a keeper, Elsa.
The first time I laid eyes on the delicious mountain of a man, Lachlan “Lock” Kelly, he walked out of the room without giving me a single glance.

You’re in trouble now.
It’s my junior year at Savage U and life is grand. Except for the fact that Lachlan Kelly lives right next door, he acts like he doesn’t know my name, and he barely acknowledges my existence.
I don’t get it. How can he so easily look away from me when he’s all I see?

The ice queen is melting…
A few angry frat boys and their arm candy make it their mission to ruin my semester and possibly my life. But I show those boys that messing with Elena Sanderson is a fatal mistake, and Lachlan surprisingly backs me up.
And when he finally gives me his attention, I greedily soak up everything he has to offer.

You’re arsenic-laced candy
Lachlan tells me I’m bad for him, but he can’t resist the pull between us anymore.

I don’t break things.
I know he’s not staying.
When he goes, he’ll leave me tangled up in memories.

I won’t play games.
His promises have a time limit, even though I’m beginning to wish they didn’t.

Even if it hurts…
We were over before we ever began.

(Author’s note: Sweet Like Poison contains dark themes and mature content, including mentions of past assault. Please read the full content warning inside the book.)