Book 1 in the Sacred Bonds series. In Texas, land is bought with money... or blood. Azad Martinez spent twenty years building a fortune on a single, cold purpose: to annihilate the uncle who stole his family's ranch and kidnapped his brother. His plan is ruthless, perfect, and leaves no room for weakness-especially not a wife. But when his cousin threatens an innocent woman, Azad makes an impulsive, strategic move. He marries her. Yasmin Garcia is a veterinarian who traded her freedom to save her family's land. She expected a gilded cage and a cold husband. She didn't expect a man whose silence speaks of old wounds, whose touch is a brand, and whose enemies are deadly. As a cartel-backed war ignites around them, Yasmin realizes her new husband isn't just a businessman; he's a king reclaiming his throne by any means necessary. As Malik Martinez and his cartel allies strike back, the battle for the Martinez legacy becomes a war for survival. Yasmin must decide if she is merely a pawn in Azad's game or the one person who can reach the wounded man behind the legend. And Azad must confront the terrifying truth: to win his war, he might have to surrender the fortress around his heart, making the woman he married the greatest target of all. A darkly romantic tale of revenge, resilience, and the ruthless fight for a place to call home.

Dominic Romanov, a mafia boss who spends the night with a beautiful woman who leaves him wanting more than what he bargained for. 𝘏𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘱, 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘺 𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘺 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘯. "𝘛𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘥, 𝘊𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘪𝘯." 𝘏𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘰𝘮 𝘭𝘪𝘱 𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘭𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘦. 𝘔𝘺 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘧𝘧 - 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘐 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵. 𝘐 𝘴𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥. "𝘏𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵."

Running from hell isnʼt easy. Especially when someoneʼs dragging you back down into it. Belligerent, brash and always in shades of black, Freya is hardly a lady. Hidden away by her father, sheʼs lived a normal life despite being born into the dark waters of New Yorkʼs underworld. Heʼs cold, cruel and calculating, with a proclivity for destruction. Feared by even Made Men, Torren is the boss of the stateʼs most leachorous crime syndicate. Freya hates his crudity and possessiveness, but she canʼt deny the way her breath hitches at his rough touch, the deep timbre of his voice, and his dark, heated gaze. Torren hates her disobedience, her recklessness, and her chaos. To him, sheʼs only something to be tamed. And after he slips a ring on her hand, snatching away her future, she makes only one vow---to become his biggest torment.

"You are mine!" He roars. "I will do whatever it takes to make you know that. Whether it means I lock you up in a prison and throw away the key." Footsteps come rushing into the dining room, and I turn to see multiple men--guards I suppose, flanking one another. Each of their hands rest on things within their jackets. Which i can only guess are guns. What else would they be? He waves them off and stalks towards me, standing behind my chair. I try to turn my head to look behind me, at him, but his hands move to the sides of my face, stopping me. "I can give you the world Mia. I am no fool. I know that love takes time, and I will give you as much as it takes. But you are mine." He says so calmly. -------------------------- When Mia Jones, a College student from Australia with a mysterious past is offered the opportunity to work as a translator for a man she had never heard of in New York City, she had assumed it would be a normal job, little did she know it would be the end of her freedom. Matteo Giovanni is the most feared Mafia leader in New York, and the whole country, heir to the Italian Mafia, he is used to getting what he wants. And when he sees Mia walk into his office for a job interview, he knows he wants her. She is his light, and he is her darkness. Will Mia ever be able to escape Matteo and the Mafia, or will she fall in love before she can stop herself? WARNING: Within this story there is coarse language, themes and violence. ______________________ #1 in Romance 29/10/2020 ----------------------------------- Began: 21/08/2020 Completed: 13/01/2021