"No. No. No." I slammed my fists against the cold metal door, my breath coming in short, sharp bursts. The air was too thick, pressing down on my lungs, choking me. My fingers clawed at the metal of the door, searching for an escape. “Let me out!” My voice cracked, but I didn’t stop. “Raze, you bastard! Let me out!” Nothing. The silence made it worse. I stumbled back, pressing myself against the farthest wall, but there was no distance, no space, just a suffocating box of darkness. My chest heaved, my pulse slamming against my skull. I couldn’t do this. Not again. Not here. “Lorenzo!” His name tore from my throat before I could stop it. Desperation drowned everything else. I slammed my palms against the door again, harder this time, until my skin burned. “Lorenzo, please!” No response. **** Thalia Winter is one of the best in her field, a trained assassin who doesn’t miss. Her life is a carefully calculated game of strategy, precision, and control. But one reckless decision in a dimly lit club changes everything. She had thought he was just a distraction, a momentary escape, but Lorenzo is no ordinary man. He is her target, and worse, he’s just as dangerous as she is. One of us won’t survive this. And I don’t know if I want it to be him.

"It won’t fail," his voice cut in, halting my trail of thought. My body tensed. Slowly, I turned to look at him. Luca leaned back in his chair, his expression unreadable, his gaze locked onto mine with quiet certainty. I forced myself to swallow. "You don't know that." "If it does fail," he said smoothly, "you are getting pregnant through the natural way." Silence crashed around us. My breath caught in my throat. **** Raven never imagined spilling coffee on a stranger would change her life forever, making her his surrogate. Luca Valentino is powerful, ruthless, and utterly untouchable and now, he needs something he wants from only her. A child. In exchange, he will erase her father’s insurmountable debt and she disappears from his life for good. But when the contract does not go as planned, Luca does not negotiate. Now, Raven is caught in a dangerous game where backing out is not an option, and resisting him might be impossible.