LOGINBut Aria can't seem to get her mind off him. Nico knows just how to get through her defenses and she sees past his scars and all the horrible stories they have to tell. But as secrets are uncovered, Aria realizes her fate is tied to a man who prefers to live in the shadows. And even as her father takes on a case involving a mysterious crime group Nico is tied to,
View MoreA TALL, HORNY, STRANGER
ARIA "You know we have to leave, Aria." I frowned at my father. "No, we don't. You can, but I won't." He shook his head as if he had heard enough of what I had to say. "Well, I have made my decision, daughter." "Dad, we've only been in Stonehaven for a month and you want us to leave because you got another transfer letter? What about my new school? My friends? You just expect me to dump them and leave?" "That's how it has always been. We leave to where I'm transferred to." "No, dad. It's beginning to look like we're running." "From what?" he asked. "You tell me." We were in the dining room and my dad was getting ready to go to work. He as a cop, a detective to be precise. With the the First Division in Stonehaven, and the only one at that. He gulped down the remaining of his coffee and tossed some breed into his mouth. I watched him masticate. "I have nothing to say to you, Aria," my dad finally answered me. "Better go get your things packed. We leave tomorrow morning." I went to my room all right but I didn't lift a hand to pack my stuff. I left them where they were because I was sure I would stay. Why the hell did we always have to leave? I didn't want to, not yet at least. He could go wherever it was that wanted to claim him, but I would stay and complete high school in Stonehaven. Stonehaven was just a suburban town in the United States of America. We were used the summer in those parts. Nothing much happened, and we literally knew each other if one had the chance to peel off that antisocial skin. They way we moved from place to place, I lacked connection. I had no roots, no long time friends to call my own and he was okay with that? I needed to talk to someone at that point. My new best friend came to mind and I picked up my phone and called Emma. The background was noisy. Music was blaring off speakers. "Where the hell are you?" I sat up in bed and asked. She was someplace having fun while I was sulking at home? "At a party. I was just about to call you. We haven't started but we're kicking off soon. Where the hell are you?" Trust Emma to throw my questions back at me. "I'm at home." She chuckled. "Oh, you're going to miss out if you ground yourself in your room. Come to Beaver's Inn right now. I've got some friends I'd like to introduce you to." "I'm leaving tomorrow, Emma." "What?" "My dad got his transfer letter." She paused for a spell. Then said, "Okay. Come to the party and we'll talk about it, good?" "Good." "Call me when you get here, sweet. Jeez, that guy is handsome." If an handsome fellow was the last thing I would remember about Stonehaven, then I had a party to attend. *** "What kind of a place is this?" I raised my voice so as to be heard over the loud music. Emma was by my side wearing a tank top and bum shorts. As for me, I opted for black leather pants and body-hugging sleeves. "A clubhouse." "What's the party about?" I asked. "It's about catching fun. One of my friend threw it. You'll meet him soon." Emma always had numerous friends to introduce me to. I wondered if it was her way of playing matchmaker. The place was well packed with people. Some of them, I recognized from school. They smiled at me, nodded their heads to the music, and walked off. She took me to a red couch. There, we were alone, then she asked what I wanted. "We've got drinks, sweets, dessert, condoms if you like dicks, cakes and smokes too." "I'll take a light beer." "Smirnoff then," she chose for me. "I'll be right back." Just as she left the disc jockey changed the music and began playing by A Bar Song by Shaboozey. Everyone went apeshit. Everyone but one man. And that was because he had just stepped into the building. My jaw dropped. He was the most handsome man I had ever set my eyes on. He was tall and lean, had dark hair, and I noticed a tattoo at the side of his neck. He looked around the place with a cold dark stare then his eyes landed in my direction. I felt my stomach churn with need. Why did I suddenly need him at first sight? He took intentional strides towards my red couch. I wondered the amount of power he had in those hips and how they would sound against my ass if he happened to give me a doggy fuck. Emma brought me my bottle of Smirnoff and an opener, interrupting my train of thought. She looked at the man who had just stopped before us and said, "Thought you'd never show your face." "I didn't want to," he said, his voice loud dangerous. "Until I heard all the noise and thought there might be some lady here willing to fuck. Who is your friend?" His eyes studied me carefully as Emma said, "This is Aria. Aria, meet Nico." I got to my feet and offered my hand. "Hi." He took it and planted a kiss on my knuckles. I swear, my insides turned into jelly and I felt some residue escape to my pussy. No one needed to tell me that I was wet already. "Sexy," he drawled, which only seemed to worsen things for me. "Please don't ask her if she wants to fuck, Nico. She's off the charts. How long will you be staying?" "I'll leave once I get my... sex partner," he said, his eyes still on me, and he didn't even let my hand go. If Nico was the one putting all those sexual images in my brain just so that I could get interested, then he was doing a really good job. "Your friend seems ready for me, though," he said to Emma. "What?" I asked, wondering why he had said that. There was a smirk on his face as his eyes fell to my breasts. When I looked, I saw that my nipples were hard and visible through my outfit. "Fuck. Excuse me," I said, plucked my hand from his, and ran off.28THE WARNING ARIAHe didn’t need me to say Nico’s name because he already knew who the hell I was asking after.“He’s in custody.”“For how long?”“That depends.”“On what?” I asked. “On what I can prove.”The answer made my chest tighten. My father was like dog after a bone. But he was also law enforcement and everyone was a criminal in his eyes except proven otherwise. And he was going to do everything it took to bring his suspects to justice. “You’re going to build a case against him," I said. “Yes.”“And if you can’t?”His gaze stiffened at once. As if that was a scenario he didn't even want to think about. “Then I’ll find another way.”That didn’t sound like justice.It sounded personal.“You hate him,” I said.“I don’t hate him.”“You do.”“I don’t trust him.”“That’s not the same thing.”“It is when someone puts my daughter in danger.”I flinched slightly.“He didn’t put me in danger,” I said.My father raised an eyebrow.“The house. The attack. The chase. The warehouse.
PROVE IT ARIA The question hit harder than anything else tonight. So I hesitated. I didn't want to give him ams answer that wouldn't satisfy the both of us so I had to think of one that would. And that hesitation was enough. His expression went dark immediately, and he knew that my answer was going to be in the affirmative. “How involved?” he pressed. “It’s not like that.” “That’s not an answer, Aria.” I looked away. Because I didn’t have one. Or maybe I did… and I just didn’t want to say it out loud. My father let out a quiet, frustrated breath. “He’s not a good man.” “You don’t know him.” “I know enough.” “You know a case file,” I shot back. “That’s not the same thing.” “I know what kind of world he operates in.” “And what about yours?” I challenged. “You deal with criminals every day. Does that make you one?” “That’s not the same.” “Why? Because you’re on the ‘right’ side?” “Yes,” he said firmly. “Because I don’t break the law to get what I want.” “And you
CHOOSING SIDES ARIA “Police! Don’t move!”Flashlights flooded the space.My father stepped in behind them, gun raised.His eyes found me instantly.“Aria!”Relief.Then anger.Then something worse.Disappointment.“What are you doing here?” he demanded.I opened my mouth—But Nico stepped slightly in front of me.“She’s with me.”That was the wrong thing to say.My father’s expression hardened immediately.“That’s exactly the problem.”Officers moved in, surrounding Nico.“Hands up.”Nico didn’t resist this time.He raised his hands slowly.I stepped forward instinctively. “Dad—”“Stay where you are,” he snapped.I froze.My father approached Nico, his gaze cold.“You’re done running.”“I wasn’t running.”“You were at a crime scene. Then you disappeared. Then you show up here.” My father’s voice was sharp. “You want to explain that?”Nico didn’t answer.“Thought so,” my father muttered.He nodded to the officers.“Cuff him.”They moved quickly, grabbing Nico’s arms.I felt something
DONE BEING A PAWN ARIAI nodded, feeling a strange mixture of relief and fear. Relief that we were alive, and fear because the war wasn’t finished — not by a long shot.Outside, sirens grew louder, the chaos of the city reaching the abandoned warehouse. But inside, for the first time that night, I felt a small sense of control, even if it was fleeting.I looked up at Nico. “I’m not going anywhere. Not from you. Not from this.”His expression softened further, and he reached for my hand. “Then we fight together,” he said, voice low, determined.And in that moment, I realized: no matter how dangerous, how unpredictable, or how ruthless the world around us had become… I was done being a pawn.This war was far from over. But for the first time, I wasn’t standing in the shadows alone.And that made all the difference.***The warehouse felt too quiet after Luca disappeared.Like the storm had passed… but left something behind. Something waiting.My hands were still shaking slightly from h
18BROTHERS AT WAR ARIA“Miss me?”The man at the top of the staircase smiled like this was a family dinner and not the aftermath of gunfire and wrecked patrol cars.Luca Velden.He looked so much like Nico it was unsettling — same height, same sharp jawline, same dark intensity in his eyes.But w
INTO THE DARKARIASilence.Then —A slow clap echoed from the top of the stairs.“Sharp,” Luca murmured. “Very sharp.”He took one step down.Every officer tensed.Nico shifted forward instantly.“Don’t,” Luca warned again.The word held more edge this time.“Or what?” Nico challenged.Luca’s smil
FACE-OFF ARIALuca smirked, tilting his head. “Does it? Or does it only begin?”I pressed back against Nico instinctively, my mind spinning. I had no weapons, no backup, and we were completely exposed. Every move felt like it could be the last.“I won’t let you take her,” Nico continued. “Not toni
13WHERE THE LINES ARE DRAWNARIA “Don’t what?”“Don’t look at him like that.”“Like what?”“Like he’s the victim.”The accusation stung.“I was in that house,” I said sharply. “Men broke in with guns. He pushed me out of the way.”“And what were those men looking for?” my father shot back.“I don


















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