Lenka's POVAfter taking a few days off—something Jonas had insisted I do—I finally returned to work.I owned my own coffee shop, equipped with a range of specialized coffee-making tools and a display case showcasing an assortment of handmade cakes, pastries, and donuts.I also provided various types of coffee for my customers, setting aside a special area where they could take in the aroma of unprocessed coffee beans before making their choice.It was a busy morning.I had already prepared and organized everything necessary before opening my coffee shop.Wearing an apron, I tied my hair up high and tight to keep it out of the way while working. I also wore gloves and a special face covering to complete my work attire.The rich scent of freshly brewed coffee filled the air, blending with the lingering aromas of the desserts I had carefully arranged in their respective places.I had arrived early in the morning, before the sun had fully risen, to set everything up by myself.Two other
Michael's POV"They’re still stubborn, even after being defeated."I clicked my tongue, recalling how some members of the Wentz family group were still trying to attack mine.That group was already falling apart. Several of their major businesses had collapsed, leaving only small ventures that wouldn’t be enough to cover the massive losses they had suffered.I didn’t have to do much—just let my men handle things. And that was more than enough.One day was all it took to throw them into complete chaos. There was no way they could return to how they once were.Such a waste of time.Rather than making things worse for themselves, they should be focusing on fixing their internal problems. It wouldn’t be easy, but it would be far better than trying to go against a group that was completely out of their league.Of course, it wasn’t a loss for me if that woman’s family destroyed the very foundation they had built with their own hands.Diego nodded."Yes, our men have also taken care of the o
Lenka's POV"Thank you for always providing the best quality coffee supplies, James."I looked at the man, who was older than me—not much different from Jonas, but with a far more cheerful and relaxed demeanor.He responded immediately, "Of course! I’m dedicated to providing the best for every shop that works with me, including yours, Lenka."I nodded with a smile, agreeing with his words.James was one of the best coffee bean suppliers in Illesas City.I had personally conducted a survey, visiting every plantation and the distributors connected to them. But not all of them met my expectations.It took me several days before I found him and quickly established a partnership. I liked the coffee beans he cultivated himself, while he was interested in my proposal.I checked the coffee packages he had delivered, which would last me a week. Even by slightly opening one of the packages, I could already catch the distinctive aroma of his coffee.The scent made me feel at ease, instantly imag
Lenka's POVI held Felix's hand, looking at him with a slightly serious expression. "Don't be too active here, Felix. Not only is it dangerous for you, but it could also be dangerous for others.""Why, Mom?" He looked confused."I just want to look around like usual..."I shook my head. "We're not the only ones here, Felix. And I can't watch you all the time—I have ingredients to buy."Right now, we were in a store that sold ingredients for making desserts and other items. This shop wasn’t far from my coffee shop, but it was much bigger and often crowded with visitors.It was my first time bringing my son here. Thinking about his boundless energy wherever he went made me a little worried.It would be difficult if Felix wandered around the store without my supervision. He wasn't very tall yet, and since my height wasn't much different from his, it would be a struggle to find him if he got lost.Felix pouted, clearly displeased with my advice."Mom, I'm not a little kid. I can be carefu
Michael's POVBeing in this city makes me feel empty.I carry out my work as usual. Nothing less, nothing more. I simply work, doing nothing beyond that.My subordinates handle everything well, leaving me with no need to interfere.That’s how it should be—because if it were any different, I wouldn’t be rewarding them accordingly. Instead, I would eliminate them without hesitation."It's done, sir." Diego's voice pulls me back to reality.I take a drag from my cigarette, inhaling the aromatic smoke as it travels through my lungs before exhaling it in a slow release.It’s the only trivial thing I indulge in between my work—smoking.Something I never particularly liked before, but over the years, in the silence, it became a habit.Not anything special, but the sensation is interesting enough to fill the void."Okay."I stand, causing my right-hand man to look momentarily confused."Where are you going, sir?" He moves instinctively, handing me my jacket, which I slip on without delay."Ju
Michael’s POVAs soon as I returned, Diego rushed toward me, followed closely by the rest of my men.He was the first to speak.“Sir, what happened to you? Your eyes… Are you all right?”They kept asking the same question over and over again, making me even less inclined to answer. I simply let their concerns go unanswered.Maybe my eyes were already swollen. Or perhaps they had noticed the burns on my fingertips from the cigarette I had forgotten to put out.I had already treated the burns, but the red, blistered marks wouldn’t fade so easily.My mind was too occupied—too fixated on that woman’s presence.I could see the confusion on their faces before they eventually stepped back, returning to their positions. I, on the other hand, kept walking at a brisk pace.I knew Diego was following me, though he remained silent as we moved.Once I reached my office, I let myself collapse onto the sofa, tilting my head back as I covered my eyes with one hand for a moment before pressing my fing
Michael's POVI looked at the file in my hands. It contained all the gathered data about the man who was with Lenka yesterday.He was a former police officer, from the same division as that woman’s father. A few years older than Lenka and seemingly the complete opposite of me.I could see the same impression in him as in her father—someone troublesome.I was certain he knew her father as well.They had only worked together for a short time—just four years—but their record of arrests and crime prevention was quite remarkable.I saw the names of several mafia businesses that had disappeared and a list of unimportant members they had managed to capture.Neither of them had ever received any official recognition from their institution, but during their time on duty, even the lowest-ranked mafia members were cautious.Diego’s personal notes even mentioned that some of our members had almost been caught by them—but failed.The troublemakers responsible for that incident were swiftly taken c
Chapter 1Lenka“Why are you crying? You’re incapable of saying anything from that mouth of yours?” He said as he looked at me coldly.Michael and I had been married for two years, but he had always been a nightmare to me with his attitude. The love I used to feel that made me live in heaven slowly disappeared after my vows with this man.Now, he was acting as usual. As I tried to figure out what my husband was really thinking.“How pitiful, Lenka.” Michael grabbed my chin, rough and painful.Another pain made me sob. The sting of his cold, piercing demeanor, he never cares about that.“Speak!”Another wave made me unable to breathe correctly, but I wasn’t a puppet he could always control. Tears continued to flow and made my eyes red.I forced myself to reply to the words of this dangerous man, Michael Vonhof, the leader of the Dragontooth mafia. When I first met him, he was sweet and gentle. He only asked if he was an ordinary, responsible worker. This was the opposite of
Michael's POVI looked at the file in my hands. It contained all the gathered data about the man who was with Lenka yesterday.He was a former police officer, from the same division as that woman’s father. A few years older than Lenka and seemingly the complete opposite of me.I could see the same impression in him as in her father—someone troublesome.I was certain he knew her father as well.They had only worked together for a short time—just four years—but their record of arrests and crime prevention was quite remarkable.I saw the names of several mafia businesses that had disappeared and a list of unimportant members they had managed to capture.Neither of them had ever received any official recognition from their institution, but during their time on duty, even the lowest-ranked mafia members were cautious.Diego’s personal notes even mentioned that some of our members had almost been caught by them—but failed.The troublemakers responsible for that incident were swiftly taken c
Michael’s POVAs soon as I returned, Diego rushed toward me, followed closely by the rest of my men.He was the first to speak.“Sir, what happened to you? Your eyes… Are you all right?”They kept asking the same question over and over again, making me even less inclined to answer. I simply let their concerns go unanswered.Maybe my eyes were already swollen. Or perhaps they had noticed the burns on my fingertips from the cigarette I had forgotten to put out.I had already treated the burns, but the red, blistered marks wouldn’t fade so easily.My mind was too occupied—too fixated on that woman’s presence.I could see the confusion on their faces before they eventually stepped back, returning to their positions. I, on the other hand, kept walking at a brisk pace.I knew Diego was following me, though he remained silent as we moved.Once I reached my office, I let myself collapse onto the sofa, tilting my head back as I covered my eyes with one hand for a moment before pressing my fing
Michael's POVBeing in this city makes me feel empty.I carry out my work as usual. Nothing less, nothing more. I simply work, doing nothing beyond that.My subordinates handle everything well, leaving me with no need to interfere.That’s how it should be—because if it were any different, I wouldn’t be rewarding them accordingly. Instead, I would eliminate them without hesitation."It's done, sir." Diego's voice pulls me back to reality.I take a drag from my cigarette, inhaling the aromatic smoke as it travels through my lungs before exhaling it in a slow release.It’s the only trivial thing I indulge in between my work—smoking.Something I never particularly liked before, but over the years, in the silence, it became a habit.Not anything special, but the sensation is interesting enough to fill the void."Okay."I stand, causing my right-hand man to look momentarily confused."Where are you going, sir?" He moves instinctively, handing me my jacket, which I slip on without delay."Ju
Lenka's POVI held Felix's hand, looking at him with a slightly serious expression. "Don't be too active here, Felix. Not only is it dangerous for you, but it could also be dangerous for others.""Why, Mom?" He looked confused."I just want to look around like usual..."I shook my head. "We're not the only ones here, Felix. And I can't watch you all the time—I have ingredients to buy."Right now, we were in a store that sold ingredients for making desserts and other items. This shop wasn’t far from my coffee shop, but it was much bigger and often crowded with visitors.It was my first time bringing my son here. Thinking about his boundless energy wherever he went made me a little worried.It would be difficult if Felix wandered around the store without my supervision. He wasn't very tall yet, and since my height wasn't much different from his, it would be a struggle to find him if he got lost.Felix pouted, clearly displeased with my advice."Mom, I'm not a little kid. I can be carefu
Lenka's POV"Thank you for always providing the best quality coffee supplies, James."I looked at the man, who was older than me—not much different from Jonas, but with a far more cheerful and relaxed demeanor.He responded immediately, "Of course! I’m dedicated to providing the best for every shop that works with me, including yours, Lenka."I nodded with a smile, agreeing with his words.James was one of the best coffee bean suppliers in Illesas City.I had personally conducted a survey, visiting every plantation and the distributors connected to them. But not all of them met my expectations.It took me several days before I found him and quickly established a partnership. I liked the coffee beans he cultivated himself, while he was interested in my proposal.I checked the coffee packages he had delivered, which would last me a week. Even by slightly opening one of the packages, I could already catch the distinctive aroma of his coffee.The scent made me feel at ease, instantly imag
Michael's POV"They’re still stubborn, even after being defeated."I clicked my tongue, recalling how some members of the Wentz family group were still trying to attack mine.That group was already falling apart. Several of their major businesses had collapsed, leaving only small ventures that wouldn’t be enough to cover the massive losses they had suffered.I didn’t have to do much—just let my men handle things. And that was more than enough.One day was all it took to throw them into complete chaos. There was no way they could return to how they once were.Such a waste of time.Rather than making things worse for themselves, they should be focusing on fixing their internal problems. It wouldn’t be easy, but it would be far better than trying to go against a group that was completely out of their league.Of course, it wasn’t a loss for me if that woman’s family destroyed the very foundation they had built with their own hands.Diego nodded."Yes, our men have also taken care of the o
Lenka's POVAfter taking a few days off—something Jonas had insisted I do—I finally returned to work.I owned my own coffee shop, equipped with a range of specialized coffee-making tools and a display case showcasing an assortment of handmade cakes, pastries, and donuts.I also provided various types of coffee for my customers, setting aside a special area where they could take in the aroma of unprocessed coffee beans before making their choice.It was a busy morning.I had already prepared and organized everything necessary before opening my coffee shop.Wearing an apron, I tied my hair up high and tight to keep it out of the way while working. I also wore gloves and a special face covering to complete my work attire.The rich scent of freshly brewed coffee filled the air, blending with the lingering aromas of the desserts I had carefully arranged in their respective places.I had arrived early in the morning, before the sun had fully risen, to set everything up by myself.Two other
Lenka’s POVI just realized that Jonas’s reaction was completely natural.He was only surprised, whereas I had never acted like this before.Taking the initiative or giving him room to hope—it wasn’t something I normally did. Even if it was just holding hands, it felt as if I had deliberately opened the door for him to step through.But that wasn’t the case."I’m sorry," I started. "This happened because I was worried about you…"I tried to pull my hand away from Jonas’s grasp, but he held on.I swallowed hard, looking back at him. "You know about my father’s death, right?"The man nodded, his gaze locked onto me as if I were the center of his world.It made me avert my eyes slightly."That... My father's death was a truly horrifying thing for me. Especially because it happened while he was handling a case, but..."I closed my eyes, the memories still vivid, as if they had happened just yesterday. The metallic scent of blood, the agonizing groans of my father—every detail remained etc
Lenka's POVI ate my ice cream while watching Felix play not far in front of me.He stood near the climbing frame, rolling his small car along the colorful metal pipes before climbing up and sitting down.He repeated the same thing several times, completely absorbed in his play, before finally climbing down and moving on to another toy.He ran back and forth, observing the trees, the grass with wildflowers, the beetles and other insects around the park, and the flock of birds soaring above us.I could hear his joyful laughter as he played, before turning my attention to the man sitting beside me."He's very active," Jonas commented.I nodded. "Yes. I'm glad he's like that."I used to worry that Felix wouldn’t be like other children, the ones who had both parents and weren’t raised by just one.He doesn’t have a father, but with Jonas around, my son can still have something close to a male figure in a family.Felix has asked me about Jonas several times, thinking that he might be his f