MIGUEL’S POV“We can't let him bask in the glory of thinking his little threat has us quaking in our boots,” I declared, my gaze flickering like a candle in the wind between Diego and Joe.“But Boss, Don Pablo isn’t exactly a dimwit. He’s itching for a showdown,” Diego countered, his brow furrowing.“And you think I’m oblivious to that? I’ve seen the havoc he wreaks. But unless we draw the first blood, he we'll just be a headless chicken running in circles,” I shot back.“But we did invade his turf to snatch back our shipment,” Joe chimed in, trying to find a foothold in this precarious conversation.“True enough, but as long as he’s got no solid evidence linking us to his allegations, he’s all bark and no bite. The unwritten rules of the underworld are his only leash, and he knows that crossing us could very well mean signing his own death warrant,” I explained, my voice dripping with confidence.“So what’s our next move, then?” Joe asked, his voice laced with uncertainty.“We keep o
DAMIEN’S POV“Are you really considering going to spend the weekend with Gabriel at Abuela’s place?” I demanded, my voice barely concealing the simmering fury bubbling beneath the surface.“What would you have me do?” Kiera threw back, clearly frustrated.“Well, you could have come up with anything. You could have conjured up any excuse under the sun to make her change her mind!” I barked, struggling to keep my emotions in check.“Oh like “I’m sorry Abuela but your grandson is an asshole and to clear the air, I’m not even his real fiancé,” Is that what I should have said?” She lashed out, crossing her arms.“Come on, Kiera. That’s not what I meant,” I countered.“Then what did you expect me to do? Because no one hates this situation more than me, and it’s driving me insane!” She squealed.I took a deep breath, knowing she didn’t deserve my wrath. She had just come home from the hospital yesterday, yet here I was, throwing verbal grenades as if I could control the chaos of our lives wh
KIERA’S POVI opened my mouth and snapped it shut, the words tangled in my throat. I had the response at the tip of my tongue, yet his question was totally unexpected.I knew he was into me, but not to this point. “For the rest of our lives?” That’s really a long time commitment, and I needed to make sure he knew what he was getting himself into. If this was just a fleeting infatuation, I wouldn’t want him to commit to me and regret it in the future.“F*ck! I knew you wouldn’t want that. I know you can’t be mine. What was I even thinking?” He grunted, turning away from me.“No, no! That’s…. that’s not it?”“Then what is it?” He probed, spinning back to face me, his voice calm as a zephyr.The charm of his alluring green eyes trapped my soul, and as I stared at him, I knew one thing; I wanted him. He was the definition of perfection, he was everything any woman could dream of. I wanted him to be the first and the last man to ever touch me. I refused to deny myself a chance at a potenti
GABRIEL'S POVTwo days. Just two damned days of sleepless nights, and it felt like I was trapped in a never-ending purgatory. Kiera hadn’t uttered a single word to me, and her silence gnawed at my insides like a rat in a wall. How do I claw my way out of this mess? I feared I’d lost her for good, and the thought was like drowning in a sea.I was shocked when she agreed she agreed to Abuela’s request, but I knew it was merely a byproduct of the contract and her respect for Abuela.I slammed my fist against the bed, feeling the pain radiate through my knuckles, “I’m f*cking losing it!” I growled, frustration slapping me hard.When she skipped dinner yesterday, I couldn’t stand it. I went to her room to check on her, I heard her footsteps heading toward the door but as soon as I called her name, I heard her footsteps retreating like I was some kind of plague. To her, I had become a monster, and it stung so deep.The worst part? Damien. That bastard was always lurking around her like a vu
KIERA’S POVWho in their right frame of mind shows up at someone’s house without any prior notice? Fabian must be all in his head!I had deliberately ignored his calls over the past few days because I didn’t want to talk to him. I wasn’t about to lead him on or give him any false hope that I shared in his father’s desire for him to court me. How on earth did he even find this address?I sighed heavily, lifting myself off the bed, feeling a knot of anxiety twist in my stomach.“Are you really going to meet him?” Damien asked, resting on his elbow, his mood nearly unreadable, like a storm cloud hovering just out of sight.“Yeah, I guess I have to,” I said, making my way to the closet. I grabbed a blouse and a flared skirt, pulling them on.Before I could fully turn around, I saw Damien already wearing his pants, his movements quick and purposeful.“What are you doing?” I questioned, my brows scrunching together in surprise.“You really think I’m just going to sit here while you go off t
KIERA’S POVThe weekend crept up on me faster than a cat on a mouse, catching me completely off guard. Ever since my meeting with Fabian, Damien had been like a ghost—present but somehow so far away. He’d taken the rest of the week off but returned to work after our talk, and for the past two days, he’d made a habit of avoiding me. Leaving before the sun even peeked over the horizon and sliding in late at night, his texts were as short as a kid’s attention span in a boring class.As I was packing my bag, the door swung open, and my heart clamped the moment I spotted Damien.My hard was thumping and fluttering at the sight of him. I had missed him so much, and his presence suddenly brought a smile on my face.“I see you’re getting ready to leave,” he said, approaching me.I paused, scanning his face, “Why have you been avoiding me?” I asked, contrasting his statement.“I haven’t,” he shot back, the defensiveness in his tone sharper than a chef’s knife.“Oh please. It’s so obvious that
GABRIEL’S POV“Are you kidding me? You want us to tell her we met at a club? What would she think about me?” Kiera asked, her eyes wide, a mixture of disbelief etched across her face. “Or maybe we could say we bumped into each other at a coffee shop and you spilled coffee on me,” I suggested.“Abuela must know that you never get your own coffees! Besides, why must it be me who spills coffee on you? What happened to you spilling coffee on me?” Her tone was a dramatic cocktail of sincerity and jest.“Fine, let’s toss that idea. How about we tell her I was in some sort of trouble and you saved me?” she countered, trying to keep the tone light.“Abuela would want details, and we wouldn’t want to give her the slightest hint about how we really met,” I shot back, noticing her brow knitting together as she pondered.I sighed heavily, resting my head against the car seat. My thoughts were a chaotic storm.“Wait, what if we say we met on a dating site? It seems realistic and doesn’t raise any
KIERA’S POVI sat in the car scrolling absentmindedly through my phone yet my, fingers drummed nervously against my thigh, each tap a countdown to my rising anxiety.Every few moments, I shot a glance at the entrance, hoping to catch sight of Gabriel, but time seemed to stretch endlessly. What could possibly be taking so long? Was Linda okay? Or worse, was Gabriel in trouble? My stomach twisted, and I shifted restlessly in my seat, feeling like a lion trapped in a cage.Just then, my phone buzzed, jolting me from my spiraling thoughts. I looked down to see a message from Damien.[Hey]I replied almost instantly, my heart racing.[Hey][Are you okay?]His concern dripped through the screen, and I typed back rapidly, desperate for the connection.[Kinda][If it’s about what I said earlier, I’m sorry for catching you off guard, but I’m not sorry for telling you how I feel about you.]A smile broke through my worry, warming my heart. I could almost picture him, those charming eyes glintin