Fated Series. Book #2 "Be possessive of me, own me, keep me, because if you do then nothing and no one else can." - Maddox. My name is Maddox Vallero, and I'm dead. Well, that's not quite true. I'm alive in the breathing, walking, talking sense-but that's about where it ends. The ghosts in my head remind me daily that I'm just a shell. Physically present, mentally shattered. For years, I've let time slip past, ticking away like I'm still trapped in that coffin, six feet under, slowly losing pieces of myself. I gave up long before I even opened my eyes this morning. So when you see me smiling, promising you the world, it's all a lie. And you'll believe it, because I'm that good. Lying, cheating, tricking-it's my game. I'm a master at making you trust in the illusion, even as I turn around and steal everything back. But somewhere along the line, I tricked myself. Now, I don't know where my lies end and the truth begins. My sanity's as fragile as the mask I wear. Then she walked in. The executive assistant I was forced to hire-a woman who sees straight through me. I lie, and she calls me on it. I grin, and she tells me to drop the act. She's the one person who refuses to fall for my games, who somehow slips past every defense I've ever built. And with her, I'm starting to see the shadows I live among. Sounds simple? It's not. Life has its own twisted sense of humor, and fate is a cunning fox that delights in making things messy. I want her, but I've got attachment issues that could bury us both. She wants me, but her commitment issues make her run every time. And together, we're tangled in pasts that haunt us, presents that hurt, and futures that we're terrified to face. This is the story of what happens when two broken people collide, each one daring the other to start taking risks.

***THIS STORY WILL BE PUBLISHED IN MAY 2025 ON AMAZON AND FREE ON KINDLE UNLIMITED!!*** [FREE BONUS CHAPTERS INCLUDED!] Eric Bolton, the CIO playboy of Bolt Investments, get more than he bargained for when he helps his nerdy assistant, Violet Harper's, nonexistent dating life with the help of his three special rules. Violet Harper is a very much single 24 year old hard working woman, who abides by the rules. She gets the personal assistant position for none other than the CIO of Bolt Investment Inc, Eric Bolton. Eric Bolton is a charming womanizer, who only dates women beyond description, is forced to take an assistant he is not attracted to, to his dissatisfaction. Enter Violet into his life. Eric's love life is colorful to say the least but lives by distinct rules when it comes to relationships, unlike his assistant, Violet. An agreement is made between the two that changes both lives. Violet has excellent organizational skills. Will she be able to organize Eric's chaotic love life or create more chaos to it?