Julian’s POV
I caught a whiff of a peculiar fragrance, which made me feel a bit uneasy all over. Just as I was in a daze, I was given a nudge.
A gentle nudge catches me off guard, a push so delicate that I barely register it.
A girl stepped into my line of sight, so my eyes drop to hers and those amber and beautiful eyes are burning with hatred toward...
Toward me?
Who the hell is this girl to be looking at me like that?
But why does the fragrance is so near? Comes from her?
“How dare you say something like that? Women are not play things to use and throw away any time you please! I don’t care what you told her. She deserves some respect!” Her words might as well be wielding pitchforks.
She's not about to wait around for applause. With a final huff and an eye-roll that could rival any teen drama, she turns on her heels, storming off with enough drama to put a soap opera to shame.
As if under some spell, my gaze remains glued to her retreating form, tracking her until she blends into the bustling scenery.
“Wow. She’s awesome.” The girl still standing next to me says.
Right, I'd almost forgotten she was there.
“She’s right. I don’t deserve how you treated me. You have no idea how to treat a woman properly. I don’t know who hurt you, but I won’t let you do the same to me. Goodbye Julian.” She walks off in the opposite direction, leaving me a little stunned.
What the fuck just happened?
“Sir? Your father is waiting.” Bash, my security detail says from behind me.
“Yeah…let’s go.” I shake my head to clear up whatever had just happened out of my head.
There’s no way I’m walking into my father’s office looking dazed from some bizarre encounter at a fucking bus stop, of all places. Bash opens the passenger door for me and I slide in with the smoothness that comes from extensive training.
Image is everything in my world, and after what just happened, I need to play the part of a mature businessman. Bash joins me in the car and pulls out into traffic with ease. He’s used to driving these streets and could maneuver through the web of traffic with his eyes closed.
It’s why my dad assigned the guy as my driver along and body guard or babysitter, whatever sounds better.
All he is to me is someone who gets in my way, but it’s a necessary evil I have to deal with for now. I’ve come this far, and I don’t intend to show my hand yet.
We drive silently, but I can feel my phone vibrating several times. I sigh and pull the annoying thing out to see ten messages waiting in the group chat.
Levi started the damn thing in highschool and has kept it going for five years now. Most of the guys just bitch about life or make plans to hit a club.
Not my scene, but every time I try to delete the damn app, Levi puts it back. I should just change the password on my phone, but I can’t be bothered.
Besides, this isn’t my real phone, anyway. I scan the messages real quick, but don’t bother replying. It’s nothing I care about. The only person I tolerate is Levi.
Those other idiots can go to hell for all I care. They have their heads so far up their asses that they don’t know which way is up.
They inherited their positions from their rich daddies and still complain like they have it so hard. They don’t know shit from where they're sitting in their ivory towers.
I’m nothing like them. My kingdom lies in the darkness where no one dares to look.
Sure, I have a spot in my father’s more…legal business, but that’s a front. It’s a mask I wear so that people don’t look too hard at what I do.
My father had taught me well. We hide the truth behind smiles and well mannered small talk in the business world while running a whole other world that is sucking those rich bastards dry.
So no, I don’t give a shit about some whining rich boys.
Bash pulls up to the front of one of my dad’s clubs and jumps out to open the door for me. I climb out and fix my suit jacket and cuffs. The place is empty right now, but by sundown there will be a line down the street to get in. This is the biggest spot in the city and yet another way for my father to clean his dirty money.
It’s also the place I’ll be taking over in three months when I turn twenty-one.
I walk toward the front door and get a nod from the guards in greeting. Bash stays behind to talk with them while I head inside. Even though the club is empty, there are several employees around getting things set up. I glance around at what will soon be mine and smirk.
This place is mine and all the hellish fun that lies within it. I pass the bar and head down the hallway where there are private rooms being cleaned.
This place is the place to go to indulge in fantasy and sin, so it needs to be thoroughly cleaned.
There are another pair of guards standing outside my father’s office door and one of them opens the door when I reach them. I walk in and spot my father sitting at his desk with his phone to his ear. He waves me in and I take a seat across from him to wait.
“I don’t give a fuck what he thinks our agreement was. If he doesn’t have the money in our account by tonight, then he needs to be shown what happens when you cross me. Get it done.” He snaps.
I have to fight myself from rolling my eyes. The things he says sound like lines from an old cheesy mafia movie.
You don’t have to threaten people with pain.
In my experience, threats are better delivered through actions, not rehearsed monologues. In our world, you administer pain before they even have a chance to beg for mercy or spew excuses about why they're short of what we demand.
“Julian.” My father says in greeting.
“Father.” I reply just as coldly.
“I hear you had a situation this morning.” He raises a brow at me in question.
I shrug. “Just another girl who thinks sleeping with me means I’ll get down on one knee for her. It’ll blow over.”
My father’s face tightens. “I’m trying to move our business in a new direction, and you making a scene with some girl not on the side of the road isn’t helping. It would have been one thing if it happened once, but you popping up in the news because of another problem with a woman isn’t helping with the plans I have for us.”
“Right. Your plans to go legit. It’s a waste of time. We’re Monroes and we have run this city for the last five generations. It used to be something you told me to be proud of, and now this? It’s a fucking joke.” I shake my head at him.
“Julian, we need to be more careful. The world is changing and if we want to stay ahead of that change, then we need to understand how to run legitimate businesses. This isn’t about cleaning money anymore. This is about a shift in dynamics and leaving a lot of this stuff behind. We can’t be connected to any of this if we want to move forward. It’s time son.” He sounds stern and harsh like he always has, but there’s a softness there that is showing his age.
He’s getting old, and this whole thing about moving our fronts into legitimate businesses is because he can’t handle this life anymore. He tried to get his brothers on board with his new plan, but like me; they thought he had lost his mind. Our family has ruled this city from the darkness for too long, and none of us are ready to let it go yet.
“Since things will be changing, it means you need to be ready to take a bigger role in the business. You didn’t finish your degree after your mom, but it’s time.” He slides a brochure across the desk toward me.
I lean in and snatch it from the surface. It's a brochure, showcasing a school with a slightly awkward-looking man and woman flashing smiles on the front cover.
“What the hell is this?” I ask.
“I’m sending you to Mishnia University to finish your business degree. Our investors will feel more confident working with you if you have the proper education. You start tomorrow.”
“What? I’m not going back to school! Fuck no.” I throw the brochure down and scowl at him.
“You will go Julian. If you want me to keep my word, then you will go. Do you understand me?”
I clench my jaw and ball my hands into tight fists. He has used this threat on me before and if it was anything else, I would tell him to stick his threat up his ass, but this isn’t just anything. I can’t risk him making good on his threat, so I back down. Until I’m able to finish what I’ve started, I need his help, so I blow out a breath and nod.
“Fine, but I know you. You aren’t sending me there just to learn. Why this school?” I ask.
He smirks. “You are definitely my son. As a matter of fact, there is something else I need from you…”
He leans forward, his voice dropping to a low, conspiratorial tone. "Julian, you've always been the one with a way of... handling delicate matters. I've been hearing whispers about a potential threat rising in the underworld. Rumors of a rival faction gaining strength."
I narrow my eyes at him, trying to decipher the layers of his words. "And you want me to deal with this?"
He nods slowly, his expression as calculating as ever. "Yes. I want you to infiltrate this rival faction, gather information, and neutralize any threat they pose. We can't afford to have anyone challenge our supremacy, especially not now."
I lean back in my chair, a mixture of unease and excitement churning within me. This is the kind of challenge I thrive on—strategy, deception, and asserting dominance. The idea of diving into a dangerous game, even if it's in the pursuit of our family's legacy, sparks a fire in my veins.
But then a thought gnaws at the edge of my mind. "What's in it for me, Father?"
His lips curl into a wry smile, as if he had been expecting this question. "Once you're inside, you'll have access to a network of contacts, resources, and information that could prove invaluable for our expansion into legitimate ventures. You'll have the tools to secure our position as we transition into a new era."
"You understand, Julian," my father continues, "this is not a simple task. You'll need to be cunning, patient, and above all, you'll need to trust no one."
Mila’s POVAs it turns out, I misread my schedule. It turns out that my classes don’t start until tomorrow, but I was supposed to start my new job right after my last class.It would be a waste of time for me to take the bus home just to leave again, so I text Isabella to see if she can pick me up. She had an appointment with her councilor today, so she should still be on campus.It only takes her a few seconds to answer.Izzy: I’ll be done in ten minutes! Are you okay waiting for a bit?Me: Of course. No hurries.Izzy: Thanks babe! I’ll see you in a little while. (Kissy face emoji)I smile down at her text.She’s always so upbeat and ready to go for anything, which still makes me wonder why she picked me as a friend. I’m a lot more quiet and standoffish than her, but what do they say? Behind every extravert is an introvert. Well, that is definitely true for the two of us.I find an empty table near the school coffee kiosk and sit down to wait. A few whispers float my way, but I ignor
Mila’s POV “You should buy something for your new job! Or is it one of those places with a dress code?” Isabella asks when we stop at the first store. I follow her as she browses the racks and my eye lands on a shiny blue dress. It looks like something I see a lot of girls wear at clubs, and it’s beautiful. I’ve never worn anything that flashy or form fitting, but the urge to try it on is strong and Isabella must see it because she walks over and grabs it. “Come on!” She chirps before grabbing my hand again and dragging me to the fitting room. “Try it on.” I do as she says and step into the small room. First, I look at my reflection. I don’t wear any makeup or nice clothes, so most of the time I look really plain. It’s a side effect of trying to be completely invisible in this town. When I’m sick of looking at myself, I turn my back to the mirror and strip my clothes off. If I turned back around, I would see the many scars on my body. This dress isn’t leaving this store with me
“That’s right. You remember me.” His words show like: I see I made an impression.Uh, he’s one of those guys who thinks he’s god’s gift to women.My internal radar beeps with a warning. He exudes the air of a man who's accustomed to turning heads, perhaps too aware of his own charm. It's a type I've learned to be wary of—someone who believes he's the ultimate prize in the game of attraction.I hate guys like that.“Not exactly.” I say and move around him to head down the hallway.“Really? Then how did you know who I was?” His words seem to insinuate, "I caught your attention, didn't I?" It's precisely the kind of arrogance I've come to disdain. I just try to ignore him.“You're not as timid as you were. Which one is the real you, huh?”He goes on from behind me.I whirl around to face him and rest my hands on my hips. “Look. This is just some sort of weird coincidence. We met at the bus stop and nothing more. Now, this is my first shift, so I can’t be late. Excuse me.”As I pivot an
Mila’s POVI feel a gush of warm liquid smash against my skin and across my chest and down the side of my face. My eyes blink rapidly as I try to process the scene in front of me. All the sounds of chaos around me fad into a steady ringing sound when I look down at my hands and see them covered.Blood. It’s blood.My eyes lift to where the man who had been touching me is clutching his hand to his chest. One of his friends grabs his arm and wraps it around the bloody mess. His head snaps to me and he starts toward me.That’s when the noise snaps into place, and I stumble back. Someone from behind me wraps their arms around me, pining my arms to my side. I struggle against him, but he turns and pushes me against the bar counter and pushes my head down on the counter with his arm. He pins me there and I feel something cold and metallic against my lower back and a tug that causes my shirt to rip down the middle of my back.The fabric drops past my shoulders and a sob escapes me.“Well, it
Mila’s POVHis lips are firm as he kisses me with violent desperation. I start to feel lightheaded as he moves his hands back down my back, and I can’t help the way I grind down against him. The small sparks from his touch are making me want so much more. My whole body feels like it’s slowly catching fire and yet I need more of his warmth. So much more.The wind is knocked out of me for a whole other reason when he flips us over and dives in to kiss me without skipping a beat. In my head, I know this isn’t a normal thing for us to be doing, given the fact that this morning I tore him a new one for being rude to another girl. It’s the fact that he’s technically my boss and I don’t know a thing about him. I’m not someone who hookup with random guys, but I can’t seem to help myself. His touch is making em ache for more, like I can’t go another second if I don’t have more of him.Why is this feeling so intense?He breaks away from our kiss and treats a trail down the side of my neck as he
Mila's POVI could say no, but it’s as if there is a thread between us and he’s tugged it so hard that I can’t help but move toward him. It would have been sexier if I crawled to him across the bed, but since I don’t know where things are going now, I decide to climb down off the bed and walk around it to stand next to him. He looks up at me and then down at his shirt as he slowly unbuttons it. My eyes follow the motion until the last button is undone, and he pulls the shirt the rest of the way off, leaving his toned chest and stomach on display.A second later, he wraps a hand around my wrist and tugs me forward until I’m close enough that he can pull my hand and place it over his injury. He leads my hand across the area, but all I feel is smooth skin and the tense way his muscles are bunched up.“See? You healed me.” He says.I look back at him and see a smirk that I’m quickly associating with him now on his lips.“So there is nothing else stopping me from having you. Right. Now.” H
Julian’s POVMila tries to cover herself, but I snap at her.“Don’t hide yourself from me.” I warn her.Her eyes widen, but she gives me a small nod and relaxes again.“Now, hold still.” I tell her because I don’t want to hurt her.I can tell by the smell of her she’s human, even with the power she possesses. That means I could kill her if I’m not careful and I don’t want to do that. She’s too beautiful and smells too delicious to end in such a brutal way. So I take a deep breath and cover her now naked body with mine and the second our skin touches, my power fluctuates until it becomes a steady pulse of electricity that matches the beating of her heart.My body is reacting to her like it never has to anyone else, but I try not to focus on what that could mean. I think that's just an illusion. She's just too pretty.Right now, all I can focus on is getting some relief.“Ready?” I ask her.Also, something I rarely do, but like I said, I don’t want to hurt her. She nods and I smirk down
Mila’s POVMy body feels sore and my eyes feel too heavy to open, but something feels off. I fight a battle against the urge to get comfortable and continue sleeping, and when I finally open my eyes, I notice Julian isn’t in bed next to me. I lift my head and glance around the room, but I don’t see him. The blankets pool at my waist when I move to sit up and I quickly grab them to cover myself. I look around the room and don’t see any sign that Julian was even here. What I do see is my shredded clothing on the floor.Where did he go?I don’t know what to do. My clothes are ruined, which means I’m stuck unless I can get someone to bring me something. I wrap the blanket around myself and climb off the bed and rush over to my pants to find my phone. When I pull it out of the back pocket, I see a dozen text messages and seven phone calls from my stepmother. Shit.There’s nothing I can do about her until I get some clothes, so I try not to think about that mess just yet. Instead, I pull up