In a hood where loyalty is rare and betrayal comes easy, two young souls cross paths with nothing but pain in their past and secrets in their future. After losing her mother, she grows up surrounded by street drama, broken friendships, and family struggles that harden her heart. He grows up knowing loss too, learning early that the streets don't love nobody. When their worlds collide, their bond feels different-real in a place where nothing ever is. But in the hood, love always comes with consequences. As tensions rise, friendships fall apart, and dark secrets surface, their connection is tested by forces bigger than both of them. In a world where silence hides truths and the streets never forget, one thing is clear... Some bonds are deeper than blood. And some stories are never what they seem.

ʟᴀɴɪ ᴡᴀꜱ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏɴᴇ ᴘᴇᴏᴘʟᴇ ɴᴏᴛɪᴄᴇᴅ. ɴᴏᴛ ᴜɴᴛɪʟ ꜱʜᴇ ʟᴇꜰᴛ. ɴᴏᴡ ꜱʜᴇ'ꜱ ʙᴀᴄᴋ ꜰᴏʀ ᴏɴᴇ ᴡᴇᴇᴋᴇɴᴅ, ᴏɴᴇ ᴛʀɪᴘ, ᴏɴᴇ ʀᴇᴜɴɪᴏɴ... ᴀɴᴅ ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴛʜɪɴɢ ꜱʜᴇ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛ ꜱʜᴇ ʟᴇꜰᴛ ʙᴇʜɪɴᴅ ᴅᴏᴇꜱɴ'ᴛ ꜰᴇᴇʟ ꜱᴏ ꜰᴀʀ ᴀɴʏᴍᴏʀᴇ. ꜱᴏᴍᴇ ꜰᴇᴇʟɪɴɢꜱ ᴅᴏɴ'ᴛ ꜰᴀᴅᴇ. ꜱᴏᴍᴇ ʟɪɴᴇꜱ ᴀʀᴇɴ'ᴛ ᴍᴇᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴄʀᴏꜱꜱᴇᴅ. ʙᴜᴛ ᴏɴᴄᴇ ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴀʀᴇ... ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ'ꜱ ɴᴏ ɢᴏɪɴɢ ʙᴀᴄᴋ.

Noelle Sinclair thought leaving him was the hardest thing she'd ever do. She was wrong. Still hurt from betrayal and trying to protect her peace, Noelle made a selfish decision... that she never told him. Now seven months later, the truth lands on his lap. And Mario Brown is the last man she wanted showing up at her door angry, heartbroken, and demanding answers. What happens when the man you still love finds out you kept his child a secret? Some betrayals don't come back from...and some love stories are never really over.

read (&&) find out 😉. finished !

the sequence to the first one 😘. read 😛. THIS WILL MAKE YOU MAD ASH 😭😭. FINISHED.

𝐈'𝐥𝐥 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐠𝐨. 𝐈 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐞. *this is my first book, please don't stress ya selves out bc I did while writing it! 😭

Milan Ren Vaughn and Kairo Benton have spent months turning their apartment hallway into a silent warzone. She's convinced he's loud, messy, and allergic to respecting her peace, while he swears she was born to complain about anything he does. Their neighbors know the tension. Management knows the tension. And Christmas is the only thing keeping the building from falling apart. So when the manager assigns them to co-run the annual Christmas charity event, neither of them takes it well. Still, the holidays won't wait, the toy drive needs saving, and someone has to hang the lights - even if it means working side by side with the one person they can't stand. But as the season settles in, something unexpected begins slipping through the cracks. Late nights of planning feel calmer than they should. Their banter softens. The glow of the holiday lights makes everything seem a little less harsh, and a little more... possible. Moments that should've meant nothing start to feel like something they can't explain. They promised their truce would end after Christmas. But the holidays have a funny way of revealing gifts you never knew you needed - especially when they're wrapped in the person living right next door.