Artist stared at the girl, a little longer than he meant too before she noticed. "You always looking at me. You don't ever wanna do nothing else?" She asked, furrowing her eyebrows at him. He smiled at her, shaking his head no. He tightly pulled her into his grip. "Since I got you, I can't ever let you go." ⊹₊˚‧︵‿₊୨ᰔ୧₊‿︵‧˚₊⊹ She works two lives at once, serving tables by day and on the pole by evening while quietly building a future she refuses to let go of. Every shift brings her closer to her dream of owning her own restaurant, but also keeps her grounded in survival. He is a rising rapper with a presence too loud to ignore, constantly appearing in her orbit with a curiosity he cannot hide. In a city built on luxury, ambition, and unspoken truth, their paths collide in ways neither of them planned. What starts as observation turns into connection, and connection turns into something dangerously impossible to walk away from.

❝𝐌𝐄𝐍 𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐍'𝐓 𝐌𝐄𝐀𝐍𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊 𝐘𝐎𝐔❞ 𝐄𝐙𝐑𝐀 skin covered in tattoos, 𝐉𝐀𝐃𝐄 skin tainted with abuse... • • • 𖦹 𝐉𝐀𝐃𝐄 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐑𝐘 a mother dealing with the mental scars of physical and mental abuse from the father of her child, 𝐀𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐒, given the chance to escape she does just that. Her trust for men vanished into the thick air of hatred and a heavy heart of trauma. What happens when she has to trust 𝐄𝐙𝐑𝐀 𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐓, a man, for her and most importantly, her daughter's, safety? 𝐄𝐙𝐑𝐀 𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐓 a remorseless, Russian, mafia boss given a request to help a domestic violence victim, 𝐉𝐀𝐃𝐄 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐑𝐘, because of his therapy background. His black heart gains a whip of light when wiping the tears of the victim. Leaning into him and his brother's 𝐇𝐎𝐀 (Holt's Organization Administration) he provides the very best protection attempting to give her a fresh start. But Is that "protection" good enough with 𝐀𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐑 on the loose? • • • 𖦹 𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐆𝐆𝐄𝐑 𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆: drama. sex. killing. domestic violence. (Read tags)

𝘏𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘧 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘪𝘮.

𝘏𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘬, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘺 𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘬 𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘵, 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘥?

Kairo is scared his autism will stop him from finding love.

She was broken, pregnant, and abandoned. He was grumpy, guarded, and done with love. But somehow, they became each other's safe place. When Amiyah Le'Rae Vynter's abusive ex finds out she's pregnant, he does the cruelest thing he can-kicks her out, leaving her homeless and heartbroken with nowhere to go. Carrying a child she didn't ask for but already loves, Amiyah vows to do everything on her own...until a caramel-skinned, tattooed stranger with a permanent scowl changes everything. Cassian Rhyse Holloway doesn't do relationships, and he definitely doesn't do drama. But when he sees a shivering, pregnant woman at a bus stop in the middle of the night, something inside him snaps. He takes her in, promising himself it's only temporary. Yet, the more he's around her-the late-night conversations, her soft laughter, the way his big hands fit over her growing belly-the harder it is to keep his distance. He's grumpy, overprotective, and quick to threaten anyone who even looks at her wrong. She's sweet, vulnerable, but stronger than she gives herself credit for. Together, they're messy, complicated, and falling for each other in ways neither expected. But when Amiyah's toxic ex tries to crawl back into her life, Cassian has to prove that he's not just her shelter-he's the man who's ready to love her and the baby she's carrying, no matter what.

Sa'Lani Monee Jeffries has always been the thick girl who gets overlooked or played. At 27, she's done with love, focused on stacking her money as a nail tech and minding her business. But when a fine, chocolate, six-foot-three gangsta with a low voice and dangerous reputation starts showing up at her job, all of that changes. Kaizer "Kai" Rashaad Wynn isn't the type of man she ever wanted. He's quiet, mean to everybody but her, and runs the streets with a heavy hand. Yet when he looks at her like she's the only woman in the world, Sa'Lani finds herself letting her guard down piece by piece. What starts as playful flirting turns into late-night phone calls, expensive gifts, and nights that leave her body aching for more. But falling for a man like Kai means stepping into a world of hood politics, jealous exes, and enemies who will use anything-including her-to get to him. When street drama hits too close to home, Sa'Lani is forced to decide if she can love a man who lives by a code that could get him killed... or if loving him will be the very thing that breaks her heart. Because Kai doesn't just want her body-he wants all of her. And when a real gangsta falls in love with a thick girl, he ain't letting go, no matter who has to get out of the way.

When Kiki visits Chicago for her cousin's wedding, she never expects to get piped down by a man who talks with his hands and growls her name like he own it. Messiah ain't like these New York dudes she's used to-he move different. Ain't loud, ain't flashy, but got that hood alpha energy that make her melt. She was supposed to be there for five days max... not fall in love with a Chi-Town gangsta who flips bricks and lifts her like she weightless. But when her past follows her to Chicago and his street life bleeds into their sex-fueled situationship, the line between love and lust starts to blur. He never chased women-especially not loud, sex-crazy, no-nonsense New York ones. But Kiki? She got him talkin' about "what we is" and pressin' her spot like he tryna build a future. But love between two people who been hurt don't come easy. And in a city full of secrets, money, and murder? Somebody always gotta pay.

"she tell me fuck you I hate you then I love you"