LOGINSurvival taught Elon Rivers that his body could be a weapon—just not in the way his stepfather intended. Now he works the con: dress pretty, play helpless, drug them, and disappear with their valuables. It's not honest work, but nothing about Elon's life has ever been honest. When he targets the wrong mark—Fort Thorne, a mafia enforcer with eyes like a winter grave—his carefully constructed world shatters. Fort knew exactly what Elon was from the moment he walked into that hotel room. The briefcase Elon stole contained information worth killing for, and Fort wants it back. There's just one problem: Elon's roommate has already stolen it from him, and now Fort is out two million dollars. Fort's offer is simple: return what was stolen, or work off the debt. Every single Penny. Trapped in Fort's world of violence and power, Elon discovers that his captor is as damaged as he is, and that the line between hatred and desire is thinner than he ever imagined. But in a world where trust is a luxury neither can afford, falling for the enemy might be the most dangerous con of all.
View MoreELON’S POVI used to believe some stories were meant to end in pain.Maybe because every beautiful thing I had ever held onto felt temporary.Maybe because life had taught me that happiness could disappear without warning.But standing there with Fort, I finally understood something I had never truly believed before.Not every love story was about avoiding storms.Some were about finding the person who would stand beside you when the storms arrived.Fort had spent so much of his life fighting.Fighting his past.Fighting his fears.Fighting the belief that he had to carry everything alone.And somehow, without realizing it, he had fought his way toward me.I looked at him.The same man who once built walls around his heart.The same man who believed distance was protection.The same man who thought loving someone meant giving them the power to destroy him.But he had changed.Not because I forced him to.Not because I saved him.Because he chose to open the door.And that meant more t
ELON’S POVFor a few seconds, I could only stare at the message.Not because I didn’t understand the words.Because I understood them too well.You finally told him. Now tell him why you were the reason he survived that night.Every part of me wanted answers.I wanted to know what Fort had been carrying.I wanted to understand why he looked at me that night and decided I was worth saving.But more than that…I wanted to understand why he believed he had to hide it from me.Because after everything he had told me, one thing was clear.Fort had never been afraid of the truth.He had been afraid of what the truth would do to us.I looked at him.His expression had changed.The walls were back.Not completely.Not the way they used to be.But I could see him fighting himself.The instinct to protect.The instinct to keep everything inside.The instinct to decide what I could handle.“Fort.”He looked at me.“Don’t.”The word surprised me.Not because he sounded angry.Because he sounded t
FORT’S POVThe message remained on the screen longer than it should have.A few words.A simple question.But somehow, it carried the weight of years I had spent trying to forget.Ask him about the night he saved you. Ask him what he never told you.I had always known this moment would come.Maybe not today.Maybe not like this.But deep down, I knew the past never truly disappeared.It waited.It stayed buried until the right person came along and pulled everything back to the surface.And now that person was standing in front of me.Elon.The only person I had ever wanted to protect from the truth.The only person whose opinion could actually hurt me.I looked at him.He was watching me carefully.Not with suspicion.Not with anger.With concern.That was the hardest part.Because if he hated me, maybe it would have been easier.If he walked away, maybe I could convince myself I had expected it.But Elon had always been different.He looked at me like he was trying to understand me,
ELON’S POVThe moment I saw Fort’s expression change, I knew the message was not just another warning.I had seen him worried before.I had seen him angry.I had seen him become protective.But this was different.This was something deeper.Something that reached a place even I had never been allowed to touch.And that scared me more than the message itself.Because Fort was not afraid of many things.Danger did not scare him.Threats did not scare him.People trying to challenge him did not scare him.But whatever was written on that screen had managed to break through the walls he had spent years building.I stared at him.“Fort.”He didn’t answer.His eyes remained fixed on the phone.The silence between us stretched.Not because he didn’t hear me.Because he was somewhere else.Somewhere in a memory.Somewhere in a part of himself he had locked away.I moved closer.“Talk to me.”His jaw tightened.“I should have told you.”Those words immediately made my heart sink.Not because I
ELON’S POVThere were very few things capable of silencing Fort completely.This was one of them.I knew because I had spent an unreasonable amount of time becoming familiar with the precise ways he occupied space—verbally, psychologically, structurally. Fort did not go quiet by accident.His silen
FORT’S POVBy the time I returned to my office, I had reached a conclusion:I disliked the entire situation with increasing precision.This was not an emotional observation, but a logistical one—a significant distinction in my opinion. Unfortunately, maintaining that distinction was becoming more c
Fort's POV Everywhere soon returned to silence just the way it was before intervened, but my eyes never left Dimitri."You're staring again." Dimitri said. I didn't look up to know he was talking to me. "Am I?" I said calmly. "Yes," Laila added, as she dragged her spoon in a very lazy way throug
Laila's POV "Everything changed the moment you left," he tried correcting. But I was having it. He seemed to have alot to say, but chose to keep quiet. I preferred it when he talked, than when he's this calm, and not saying much. "No." I tried challenging him, but my voice lacked conviction even












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