CHAPTER 1I should have stayed home.That's the thought running through my head as the cab pulls up outside Club Noir, the bass from inside vibrating through the door, through the pavement, through the soles of my shoes.Three months.Luca had been gone three months for Alpha training and I'd missed him so badly I'd done something stupid. Bought a last-minute flight. Booked a hotel. Told myself it would be romantic — showing up unannounced, surprising my fiancé.I was so sure he'd be happy to see me.The bouncer lets me in without question. Inside, the music is loud enough to make thinking difficult, which is maybe why I don't turn around when I should. Strobe lights cut across bodies on the dance floor. The air smells like alcohol and expensive cologne and something else underneath it — recklessness, maybe. The kind that gets into your lungs.I text Luca.Hey, I'm actually in the city. Surprise? Where are you?No response.I ask the bartender if he knows where the VIP section is. He
Last Updated : 2026-05-05 Read more