تسجيل الدخولDiego’s POVI flicked the ash off the end of my cigarette, watching the smoke drift out the cracked window of the blacked-out SUV.The engine was idling quietly in the dim side street opposite the residential tower. My knuckles were white where I gripped the leather of the steering wheel. Beside me, Leo was constantly checking his suppressed piece, while Kash and two other boys sat in the back, silent and tense.We had been sitting in this damn car for nine hours.Ever since the hit squad failed last night and Kai Valentino slaughtered them in his sub-basement, Old Man Sullivan had been breathing down my neck. The whole family was spiraling because Kai was cutting off our shipping routes at the docks, freezing our offshore accounts, and closing the vice around us day by day. We were bleeding out.If we didn't get leverage on Kai—and get it fast—Sullivan was going to put a bullet in my head for failing him."Boss," Leo muttered, pointing a gloved finger through the tinted windshield. "
Hazel’s POVBy the time Sophia left my office, the rest of the workday flew by in a blur of financial reviews, contract approvals, and endless strategy meetings.Having Marcus and the rest of the guard detail standing outside my doors definitely drew looks from every executive on the floor, but just like I’d told Sophia, I stopped caring. The extra layer of protection gave me a strange sense of grounding. It reminded me that I had too much at stake—and too many people depending on me—to take stupid risks.When my clock finally hit six in the evening, I packed up my tablet, slipped back into my heels, and let the team escort me down to the waiting SUV.The drive back to the penthouse was quiet. The evening sun was setting over Rome, casting a deep amber glow across the ancient stone buildings and busy streets. By the time I walked into the penthouse, the quiet inside felt heavy, almost peaceful after such a chaotic day."Kai?" I called out, setting my keys and leather bag on the entry
Hazel’s POVIf I had to walk into E&H Investments looking like an underworld boss, I was at least going to own it.The heavy black SUV pulled up directly to the front doors of E&H headquarters. Before my personal driver could even unbuckle, the doors on the two escort vehicles behind us swung open simultaneously.Four men in identical, tailored black suits stepped out into the morning sun. They moved with a silent, sharp sync that practically screamed dangerous. Two of them immediately set up a perimeter near the revolving glass doors, while the other two opened my car door and offered me a hand out.I smoothed down the skirt of my emerald green tailored suit, pulled my dark sunglasses over my eyes, and stepped onto the pavement."Good morning, Miss Sinclair," the head guard, a tall man named Marcus with a scar across his left eyebrow, said smoothly. "We’ll clear the lobby first.""You all can just walk with me, Marcus," I replied, keeping my head held high. "We're here to run a corpo
~~Kai’s POV~~"Just make sure you're ready, son," Victor said, his hand resting on the golden top of his cane. "Because Marcelo isn't the only problem coming your way."Before he could push the elevator button to leave, the light footsteps of heels clicking softly against the hallway floor broke the heavy tension in the room.Hazel stepped out of the bedroom corridor into the grand living room. She was wearing a cream-colored silk robe, her dark hair tumbling over her shoulders, still looking a little sleepy. But the second she saw my father standing there, she froze, her eyes widening in surprise."Oh," she murmured, quickly pulling her robe tighter around herself. "Good morning, Mr. Valentino. I didn't realize we had company."I watched my father turn toward her. A year ago, back when she was trapped as Damon's ignored wife, Victor wouldn't have even looked at her. But now? Now she was running E&H Investments, tearing up European real estate markets, and standing on her own two feet
Hazel’s POVThe silence in the penthouse was suffocating.I paced back and forth across the marble floor of the living room, my heels clicking sharply against the stone. Every shadow outside the floor-to-ceiling glass windows felt menacing, every distant sound from the city making my chest tighten. Kai had told me to wait here, but thirty minutes had felt like thirty hours.And now it's been almost two hours and he wasn't back.Suddenly, the private elevator chimed softly.The heavy doors glided open, and my breath caught in my throat.Kai stepped out into the foyer. His dark suit jacket was gone, his crisp white dress shirt unbuttoned at the collar with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms. He looked disheveled—dark hair slightly untamed, a sharp, dangerous edge radiating off him, and a subtle scent of smoke and faint metallic iron trailing in his wake."Kai!"I didn't hesitate. I rushed across the living room, closing the distance between us and stepping right into his space. I gra
~~Kai’s POV~~The twin turbochargers of the Bugatti roared through the empty Roman streets, the digital speedometer hovering dangerously high as I tore through every red light between Lake Albano and the city center.Beside me, Hazel kept glancing at me from where she sat in the passenger seat, her hands tightly clutched around her seatbelt. The peaceful, starlit glow from the lake was completely gone, replaced by a sharp, suffocating silence inside the cabin."Kai, please talk to me," Hazel begged softly, her dark eyes wide with mounting concern. "What is going on? What happened on that call? You're driving like we're running for our lives.""Nothing you need to worry about right now, bellisima," I said, forcing my voice to remain even and smooth, though my knuckles were turning bone-white against the leather steering wheel. "Reed called because an issue came up at one of my properties. I just need to get you home safely." I lied, but it wasn't entirely a lie if you looked closely be
The emergency room was chaos.Doctors and nurses rushed past us in a blur of white coats and urgent voices. Melissa was already being taken deeper into the hospital, away from us, and Damon was following her, his hand on her shoulder, his expression a mixture of rage and desperation.I came through
I stood at the top of the stairs, completely frozen, unable to move, unable to process what had just happened."No," I whispered. "No, no, no. Melissa!"I hadn't pushed her.I hadn't meant for this to happen.It was an accident.But she was lying at the bottom of the stairs, not moving, and Miss Mia
Damon left early in the morning.He didn't tell me where he was going or when he would be back. He just kissed Melissa goodbye at the kitchen table while I was making breakfast, and then he was gone. Gone to handle the Moretti family business. Gone to do whatever it was that men like him did when th
I couldn't sleep.I lay in the guest bedroom for hours, staring at the ceiling, listening to the sounds of the house. At some point around 2am, I gave up pretending and went downstairs to the living room. I curled up on one of the couches with a blanket, my mind racing with everything I had heard at







