THE COLLISION

HIS TOUCH, HER FIRE🔥

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Chapter One

The Collision

The sun had barely crested over the ridge when Evelyn Grace Carter slammed the rusty barn door shut with the force of a woman at war with the world. Her boots, caked in the memory of last night’s rainfall, crunched over gravel as she marched across the yard, jaw set, heart pounding—not from the early morning chill, but from the letter now crumpled in her back pocket like an insult. Another overdue notice. Another threat. The ranch was bleeding money she didn’t have, and the banks were circling like wolves dressed in suits. Her father had died three months ago, and with him, the thin thread that had kept Carter Ranch out of foreclosure. Now it was all on her. Twenty-one, broke, and barely holding it together. She had no time for pity, and even less for the black SUV that just turned up the driveway, tires kicking up dust like arrogance on wheels.

She didn’t recognize the sleek beast of a vehicle, but she knew what it meant—trouble. No one who drove a car like that came to Carter Ranch with good intentions. She didn’t wait for the knock. She marched toward it, fists clenched, chest heaving as the door swung open and a man stepped out—tailored navy suit, sunglasses hiding eyes she already knew were going to piss her off, and an expression carved from marble and ego. He looked like Wall Street money and dark secrets, and Evelyn instantly hated him.

“You’re on private property,” she snapped before he could speak.

The man removed his glasses with an infuriating slowness, revealing eyes like liquid steel—sharp, unreadable, and somehow colder than the wind. “I’m Damien Romano,” he said, voice low and dangerous, like gravel dragged across silk. “I believe your land is part of a pending acquisition by Romano Enterprises.”

Evelyn felt her spine stiffen. “The hell it is.”

He smiled, but it wasn’t kind. “It will be. Unless, of course, you have the two-hundred thousand your father owed us before he died.”

Every word felt like a punch. Her father. Debt. Them. She wanted to laugh—bitter and sharp—but her throat tightened instead. “You think you can just roll in here, throw money and threats, and I’ll fall on my back and hand you my family’s land?”

Damien’s smile vanished. “No. I expect you to act like an adult and make a smart business decision before it’s made for you.”

“Then you came to the wrong woman,” Evelyn bit out, stepping forward, forcing him to look down at her, not with fear, but fire. “Because I don’t play nice with men who think they own everything they see.”

His eyes flicked to her lips—quick, instinctive, but she caught it. She saw the crack in the polished exterior, the flicker of something... deeper. Intrigue? Amusement? She didn’t care. “Let me be clear,” she added, voice quieter now, a whisper of thunder, “I don’t give a damn who you are or what you own in that shiny city of yours. This land is mine. My father’s blood is in this dirt, and if you think I’m going to hand it over to some silver-spooned devil in a suit, you’re going to find out how sharp my claws can be.”

Damien looked at her for a long moment. Then he laughed—a low, almost amused sound that prickled her skin like static. “Feisty,” he murmured. “No wonder the bank said you’d be difficult.”

“I’m not difficult,” she said, taking another step, until they were almost chest to chest, his height and power radiating down over her, hers rising up like fire through dry grass. “I’m impossible.”

“I like impossible,” he said, his voice softer now, his gaze darkening in a way that made her breath catch and her stomach twist. Not with fear, but something worse. Something dangerous.

She hated him already.

And yet...

Something about the way he looked at her—not with pity or lust, but challenge—made her feel like she’d just stepped into a game she didn’t understand. He was the type of man who broke women and didn’t even remember their names. And she was the type who buried men like him with words alone. But now they were staring at each other like predators in the same cage, both refusing to blink first.

“I’ll be back,” Damien said finally, adjusting his cufflinks as he turned toward the SUV. “You’ll come to your senses.”

“Don’t count on it,” she hissed.

But she knew he would come back. And worse—she knew part of her wanted him to. Not the arrogant businessman. But the heat in his eyes. The promise in his voice. The danger.

As the SUV disappeared down the dirt road, Evelyn stood still, heart hammering in her chest, hands trembling slightly with rage—or something close to it. She had just met the man who wanted to take everything from her.

And he had looked at her like he wanted to devour her.

Trouble had arrived.

And his name was Damien Romano.

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