Chapter 2 — The Monster in the Dark

The restaurant smelled like warm bread and expensive wine, but none of it calmed the storm inside Nora as she walked in. She spotted Liam sitting by the window, scrolling through his phone like he had no care in the world. This was the man she was supposed to marry next weekend. The man she had loved for two years.

When Liam finally lifted his head and saw her approaching, the first thing that flashed in his eyes wasn’t guilt. It wasn’t sadness. It was irritating—like her showing up was inconvenient for him. She sat across from him, her hands trembling beneath the table.

“Liam… what exactly is going on?” she asked quietly.

He let out a long, bored sigh, leaning back in his chair as if the conversation exhausted him. “Fine,” he said, tapping his fingers on the table. “My family no longer wants this marriage.”

The words hit her harder than the cold breeze outside.

“What?” she whispered. “Liam, what are you talking about? We’ve planned everything. Our families already—”

“No company wants to associate with your father’s company anymore,” he cut in, his tone sharp and dismissive. “Your father is bankrupt, Nora. Do you understand what that means? He has dragged his name through the mud, and my family refuses to be a part of that.”

Nora felt the breath leave her chest. “But… you promised me—”

“I promised things when your family still had value,” Liam snapped. “I can’t marry into a sinking ship. And honestly, I have better options now. The Rico approached my family recently. They want an alliance. They’re wealthier, more powerful, and actually useful.”

Her heart cracked open as each word sliced through her. “Useful?” she whispered. “Is that what I was to you? A business opportunity?”

He didn’t even deny it. “Don’t make this emotional,” Liam muttered, flipping his phone over. “It’s better for both of us. You’ll meet someone else eventually.”

Her vision blurred. Her chest tightened. Her throat felt like it was slowly closing. She rose from the table because if she stayed a second longer, she would break down in front of him, and she refused to give him that satisfaction.

“I need a moment,” she whispered, her voice shaking so badly she barely recognized it.

She walked away before the tears could spill. She walked slowly down the hallway, hugging herself, trying not to fall apart. She needed air. She needed silence. She needed anything but him.

But as she took a step closer to the corridor on the left, she heard something that made her freeze.

Men’s voices. Deep. Serious. Threatening.

“Mr. Adriano Greco,” one of them said with caution. “We’re here to close the deal. You have to sell them to us.”

Her blood ran cold. Adriano Greco. She had heard that name before. Whispers in the hospital. Nurses talking about the underground world. Rumors that made her skin crawl.

Then she heard the other voice—deep, cold, calm.

“I don’t sell my goods for evil purposes,” he said. “My men don’t work for devils. My goods will never fall into the wrong hands.”

The air grew thick, as if the entire hallway was holding its breath.

Then—

A single gunshot exploded through the corridor.

Nora’s heart jumped into her throat. She slapped her hand over her mouth and bolted into the restroom, slamming the door behind her. Her entire body shook. She pressed herself against the wall, trying to control her breathing, trying to pray that whoever fired that gun didn’t see her.

But then the door swung open.

And he walked in.

The man from that night.

The stranger who had kissed her on the street. The stranger she’d bandaged. The stranger who was being hunted.

Adriano Greco.

She felt her knees weaken, her voice trapped behind her tight throat. “Y—You,” she whispered, trembling. “Why… why are you here?”

He stepped inside and shut the door behind him with a quiet click. The sound echoed like a warning.

He walked toward her slowly, his presence intense, overwhelming, and dangerous enough to make her heart pound painfully. She pressed herself farther back, wishing the wall would swallow her.

His eyes traveled over her face, dark and unreadable. “You saved me the other night,” he said quietly, his voice rough but controlled. “I didn’t get the chance to thank you.”

Her breath shook. “Thank me? You kissed me without my permission,” she whispered. “You scared me. And now—now you’re here? Why? What do you want from me?”

The corner of his mouth tilted, almost amused. “So you know who I am.”

“You’re Adriano Greco,” she said, her voice trembling. “The monster people talk about.”

He took another step closer. “Monster?” he repeated softly. “That’s what they call me?”

She nodded, trying to stay brave even though her entire body felt like it was vibrating with fear. “Everyone knows your name. Everyone knows what you do.”

He stepped closer until she had nowhere to run. Her back pressed helplessly against the wall, her chest heaving with shallow breaths. His eyes never left hers, dark and intense, as if he wanted to see her soul.

And then he reached out.

His hands slid to her thighs.

Nora gasped, her breath catching as he lifted her effortlessly. Her legs instinctively clamped around his waist, not because she wanted to, but because he held her with a strength that didn’t give her time to react.

“Stop,” she breathed, but her voice was too weak, too soft.

He placed her gently against the wall, his hands on her thighs, his touch surprisingly soft for a man with blood on his hands. His fingers brushed her skin, warm, firm, and careful. The gentleness confused her more than his danger.

“You shouldn’t say my name with fear,” he murmured. “You saved me. I don’t hurt the people who help me.”

Her heart thundered uncontrollably. She wanted to push him away. She wanted to scream. But her body betrayed her. Heat spread through her skin where he touched her. Her breath stuttered when his thumb slowly traced her thigh, upward, sending a shiver through her she didn’t understand.

And then—

He kissed her.

This kiss wasn’t like the one from the street. It wasn’t rushed. It wasn’t panic.

It was intentional.

Slow.

Deep.

Dangerous.

Her hands pushed at his shoulders, but her lips parted helplessly. Her mind screamed to stop, but her body melted against him. For a moment, she forgot everything—Liam’s betrayal, the gunshot, the danger. There was only his mouth moving against hers, his hands holding her steady, the heat of his body pressing into her.

She felt alive and terrified at the same time.

Then the memory of Liam’s cold words hit her again, and she snapped back.

Nora broke the kiss, shoving against him with trembling hands. “Put me down,” she whispered, breathless.

Adriano studied her face for a moment—curious, unreadable—before he finally lowered her onto the floor. She didn’t wait for him to say anything else. She pushed past him and ran out of the washroom, her heart pounding so hard she felt dizzy.

By the time she got home, her hands were still shaking. She kept replaying the kiss in her mind, the heat of his touch, the intensity in his eyes. She hated herself for remembering it. She hated herself for reacting. She hated the confusion he left behind.

And worse…