Underworld

CAMILLA As if being used by Rico for his club business wasn’t enough, he sold me to Nighthaven’s billionaire, the untouchable AUGUST CHILDE. August Childe is dangerous in ways money can’t hide. He is intense, possessive, and beautifully broken. He lives with bipolar disorder, a mind that swings between control and care. I should be afraid. Instead, I’m falling. And loving him might cost me the last piece of myself I still own. AUGUST She’s a goddess. That’s the only word that fits. I want her—desperately, irrationally—but how does someone like her survive someone like me? I want her, but I have a fiancée forced on me by my family, and my family would rather destroy this goddess than tarnish our legacy. I want her. And I don’t know how, or if I can stop. Sold into South Nighthaven’s underworld, Camilla survives years of exploitation before being claimed by August Childe—the untouchable billionaire heir whose power hides a dangerous truth: a bipolar disorder he has never learned to control. What begins as captivity ignites into a forbidden, consuming love complicated by his fiancée, a woman forced on him by his family, his family’s ruthless legacy, and a mind constantly on the edge of unraveling. When August chooses reputation and almost marries his fiancée, Camilla walks away carrying his child—only to be dragged back into the darkness she barely escaped. It is only after losing Camilla that August dismantles the empire that owned her, confronts his illness, and abandons the life that taught him love was disposable. Love offers them a second chance—but only if August chooses healing over control, and Camilla decides whether trusting the man who once let her go is worth the risk of losing herself again.

“Shut your fucking damn mouth!” Zach’s voice echoed through the room, raw and sharp with anger. Madison didn’t flinch. If anything, the fire in her eyes only burned brighter. She had been pushing his buttons for days—emotionally, mentally. And it tore at him, deep down where no one could see. “I thought you liked it open,” she said with a wicked smirk, sauntering toward his desk like she owned the place. His body betrayed him, twitching at her dirty words. Of course she knew exactly what to say. She always did. “I’m not quitting!” she snapped. “I am a doctor. A damn good one. Who do you think you are to tell me to give that up?!” Zach rose from behind his desk, calm yet dangerous. His hands moved to open his suit jacket, revealing that familiar tension in his shoulders—the one that made her heart race. “Wha—what are you doing?” He closed the space between them in two strides. “I’m your Daddy,” he growled, low and close, “like you cried out last night. And you… you’re mine.” And then his lips crashed into hers before she could breathe another word. ~~ Darly Madison—respected surgeon, focused, disciplined, and just a little stubborn—had her world under control. That is, until her best friend dragged her to a luxurious night party at one of the city’s most exclusive hotels. One night. One mistake. One man who turned her world upside down. Zach Westley. Mafia boss. Dominant. Dangerous. Possessive to the core. She thought it was just a one-night stand. He had other plans. Now her life as a surgeon collides with a dark underworld she never saw coming. And whether she likes it or not… she’s been claimed by the Mafia.

I'm ten years older than Vincenzo Corleone. He had just turned 23 years old when he took over the Corleone family as the patriarch. A hint of teenage childishness could still be seen etched onto his youthful features. I was the one who held his hand and helped him calm the turbulence of his family affairs. I blocked three assassination attempts that were made on him. I used five years of my life to help him grow from a useless scion into the fearsome don who wielded the utmost authority in Nowork's underworld. Once, Vincenzo had embraced me in the church. He rested his forehead against my palm as he swore, "Age, identity, or the world's viewpoint of us will never stop us from being together, Freya. I will protect you with my life." But after that, he told his older brother, Marco Corleone, "Freya is too old. She's already 38 years old; I can practically smell the rot of age rolling off her. Even the crinkles in her smile disgust me to no end." Some time later, Vincenzo found himself a mistress who bore some resemblance to me. She was young and vibrant—like a white rose who had never experienced the ugly side of society. While Vincenzo gave me the title of the Donna of the Corleone family, he reserved his gentle, doting, and even passionate side for the mistress named Lina Marino. Vincenzo thinks he can pull everything off flawlessly. What he forgets is that the reason why I can establish my reputation in the underworld isn't because of his protection. I've been relying on my ruthlessness and my sharp sixth sense this whole time. When I slam the signed divorce agreement onto the spot before Vincenzo, I say with a smile, "You've fought by my side for so many years, so you should know very well that I can afford to go for high-stakes risks and withdraw my chips whenever needed. "But once I lose, someone here has to pay the price!"