Leilani James has spent her whole life being underestimated, overlooked, and bruised-physically and emotionally. In a world that praises lightness and perfection, her dark skin and full figure have always made her a target, especially for Zeke: the sharp-tongued best friend of her boyfriend, Chris. Zeke's jokes cut deeper than he knows, masking truths he's too stubborn to face. But when secrets start to surface and loyalty begins to blur, the line between hate and something else entirely becomes dangerously thin.

He left a mark I never asked for. Now he wants to finish the piece. Amina Westbrook didn't choose motherhood. But when her younger sister dropped a baby and disappeared, Amina stepped in, raised that little girl as her own, and never looked back. Seven years later, the past comes tatted, cocky, and fine as hell, standing in the grocery store with the same hypnotic eyes her daughter sees in the mirror. Santiago Vega. Zuri's father. The man who left before he ever knew she existed. Now he wants in. He wants time. Forgiveness. A chance to be a father. And every time he shows up with that deep voice and soft smirk, Amina hates how bad she wants to let him. He's not just showing up for Zuri-he's showing up for her. Fixing things she didn't ask him to fix. Dropping money in her hand like it's his right. Touching her like he already knows how she breaks. And Amina? She's been holding everything together for so long that she doesn't know how to let go. Doesn't know how to want someone who actually stays. But Santiago? He stays. Through the attitude. The boundaries. The sparks that keep catching fire. And when he finally gets his hands on her? There's nothing soft about it. Now she's spiraling in his sheets, fighting him in front of her family, and falling harder than she ever meant to. Because Santiago doesn't just want to play daddy. He wants the whole damn family. And this time, he's not leaving until he has them.

"So you just wanna fuck me forever, and that's it, huh?" "I ain't say-" He sucked his teeth. "We already talked about this shit, Z." "Nah." She chuckled dryly. "You just keep shutting me out." "Why you doin' this to me, Ma?" He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Hm? Why you tryna fuck everything up?" • • • • • • 𝚆𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚊 𝚗𝚘𝚗-𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚖𝚎𝚎𝚝𝚜 𝚊 𝚑𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚌, 𝚊 𝚌𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚌 𝚝𝚊𝚕𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚋𝚎𝚗𝚎𝚏𝚒𝚝𝚜 𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚗𝚜 𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚐𝚒𝚌 💌👻 𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝟷 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚅𝚊𝚕𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜