FORCED TO MARRY THE MAFIA BOSS

SHADOW IN THE STREET

Chapter 1

Raina Cole wiped her tired hands on her apron as she stepped out of the hotel into the cool night air. The streets were unusually quiet, lit only by flickering street lamps casting long shadows across the cracked pavement. She tugged her bag over her shoulder and quickened her pace, eager to get home, to leave the day behind her.

She always liked these late-night walks. They made her feel invisible, safe in her solitude. But tonight, something in the stillness made her gut twist.

As she turned a corner near a narrow alley, a sharp noise stopped her in her tracks. A man was arguing violently with another figure. Then, in an instant, a gunshot rang out—echoing off the walls like a thunderclap in the silent night.

Raina froze. Her eyes widened as she saw the first man crumple to the ground, lifeless, blood spreading across the concrete. Her stomach turned. This wasn’t random violence. This was cold, deliberate murder.

And then she saw the man standing over the body. Tall, broad, impossibly composed, his presence radiating danger and power. His eyes were sharp, calculating, and she recognized him instantly from hushed whispers at the hotel: Lucien “Luca” Moretti, the feared mafia boss whose name alone could silence a room.

Raina’s breath caught. She had seen too much. Her instincts screamed at her to run—but fear rooted her to the spot.

Luca straightened, his gaze sweeping over the alley, and then… it locked onto hers. Her heart skipped a beat. She was frozen, trembling. He had seen her.

A chill ran through her veins. Every horror story she had ever heard about him flooded her mind. She had witnessed a killing, and now she was visible.

She stumbled backward, tripping over a loose stone, desperate to appear calm. “I… I should go,” she whispered to herself, voice shaking.

But he didn’t move. He just stared, a silent predator observing his prey. Raina felt the weight of his presence as if it were physical, pressing down on her chest.

Every step she took felt dangerous. Every shadow seemed alive. By the time she reached the corner of the main street, her hands were trembling, her breath ragged. She told herself she had gotten away. She was safe.

But deep down, she knew the truth: Luca Moretti had noticed her. And once he noticed… nothing would ever be the same.