جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 20

Adeline's POVThe bedroom felt different at night.Larger somehow. More dangerous. The massive bed that had seemed like neutral territory during the day now loomed between us like a battlefield neither wanted to acknowledge.I stood at the window, stalling. Watching the city lights blur below while Kayden moved around the room behind me. I could hear every sound. The rustle of fabric as he changed. The soft click of the bathroom door. Water running. Each noise amplified by the tension stretching between us.Rule five: we share this bed. Every night. No exceptions.The bathroom door opened. I turned despite myself.Kayden wore only sleep pants, slung low on his hips. His chest was bare, revealing the scars I'd noticed before. Some old, faded with time. Others newer, angrier. Evidence of a life lived on the edge of violence. Muscles shifted under skin as he moved, and I forced myself to look away.Our eyes met and I held his gaze.Heat flared in my stomach. Unwelcome. Undeniable."You c

Adeline's POVThe café was exactly as I remembered it.Small. Cozy. The kind of place that served overpriced lattes and played indie music too loud. Annabelle and I had spent countless afternoons here during her high school years, studying together, laughing over nothing, pretending life was normal.Back when normal was still possible.I sat in our usual corner booth, facing the door. Old habit. Always watch the exits. Always see who's coming.My phone buzzed.Annabelle: Five minutes away! Can't wait to see you! I smiled despite the knot of anxiety in my stomach. Two weeks since the wedding. Two weeks of playing the perfect wife while dying to see my sister. To make sure she was okay. To hold onto the one pure thing in my increasingly dark world.Two weeks of sleeping next to Kayden every night. Of waking up in his arms more often than not. Of pretending the heat between us wasn't building to something inevitable.The door chimed. Annabelle burst in, blonde curls bouncing, smile brig

Adeline's POVThe club was excessive.All velvet and chrome, pulsing bass that vibrated through the floor, lights that strobed in time with music loud enough to drown thought. Private VIP section on the second floor overlooking the main dance floor. Bottle service. Security everywhere.And strippers. So many strippers."This is tradition," Marco explained, grinning as he handed me a drink. "Combined bachelor-bachelorette party. Gravano style. Everyone celebrates together.""How progressive," I muttered."I know, right?" He clinked his glass against mine. "Kayden's grandparents started it. Said separating the sexes on the night before a wedding led to too many secrets. This way, everyone's sins are visible."Great. Public debauchery instead of private.The party had been Marco's idea. A belated celebration since Kayden and I had married so quickly. Three weeks late, but apparently mandatory for family tradition.I'd argued. Kayden had overruled me."It'll look strange if we don't hav

Adeline's POV The dress pooled at my feet. I stood before him in nothing but black lace. Vulnerable in a way I'd never been with anyone. Not in a fight. Not on a job. Not ever. Kayden's eyes dragged down my body. Slow. Deliberate. Like he was memorizing every curve, every line, every imperfection. "Beautiful," he breathed. "So fucking beautiful." "Your turn." His lips curved into that dark smile. The dangerous one. But his hands moved to his shirt. Unbuttoning slowly. Too slowly. I stepped forward. Pushed his hands away. Took over. My fingers worked the buttons. One by one. Revealing skin and muscle and scars. There were so many scars. I traced one along his ribs. Long. Jagged. Old. "Knife fight," he said. "When I was seventeen. Guy didn't like that I was taking over my father's territory." "Did you kill him?" "Eventually." I moved to another scar. Smaller, rounder. Bullet wound. "Twenty-two. Rival family. They ambushed me and Marco outside a restaurant."

Adeline's POV The response came immediately. Stardust: Smart choice. Details incoming. Encrypted file. Password: Phoenix. You have one week to complete. No extensions. A link appeared. I clicked it. Downloaded the encrypted file to my phone. Beside me, Kayden's breathing remained steady. Still asleep. Or still pretending. Either way, I needed privacy. I slipped out of bed. Grabbed my laptop from the desk. Headed to the bathroom. Locked the door. Sat on the closed toilet lid and opened the file. The first thing I saw was the payout confirmation. Ten million dollars. Transferred to an offshore account upon completion. Clean, untraceable. Then the target details loaded. Target: Antonio Russo Age: 47 Occupation: Underboss, Russo Family Location: New York City Threat Level: High Deadline: 7 days Antonio Russo. I'd met him at the wedding. Russio's business partner. One of the most powerful men in the New York mafia. And someone who worked closely with the Gravano family