I witnessed something I was never supposed to see. A scream in the rain. Two men running. And then him—Valerio Blackthorn, the man people whisper about but never approach. He stepped out of the shadows like he owned the darkness itself. I should have run the moment his eyes found mine. I should have pretended I saw nothing. Instead, I became the secret he refused to let slip away. “You saw too much,” he told me. “Now you belong to me.” He pulled me into his world—a world of power, secrets, and danger hiding behind every corner. His mansion became my cage, his presence my torment… and the only thing that made my heart race. I tried to escape him. I tried to hate him. But Valerio’s darkness wasn’t just terrifying—it was addictive. The way he watched me. The way he protected me. The way he whispered my name like I was the only light he allowed himself to touch. I thought he would destroy my life. Instead, he became the center of it. In a world where danger is everywhere and loyalty is a weapon, I found myself falling for the last man I should ever trust. Because once you step into the shadows with him— there is no going back.