In the blink of an eye, I lost everything - my mother, my home, and my life. The only thing she left me was a debt I couldn't repay and a bounty on my head, and desperate times require desperate measures. ---------------------------------------- A mischievous smile spreads across his lips as he takes a big step toward me, and as soon as I am within his reach, he grabs my hips and pulls me against him. I lay my hands on his chest and trace my fingers along the outlines of his tattoos as he maneuvers me back to his desk. My ass presses against the edge of his desk as he lets his hands run down my sides until he grabs my ass cheeks " Are you sore from last night, baby?" "I'm fine." "I hope you're not lying to me," he whispers against my lips.

What if the love of your life only stood across the street from you? What would you do? Cross the street or wait for them to do so? Would you guys both make the attempt or let the busy streets wash past you guys and blind your eyes of the future you guys can have? Let the honking block your ears of the expression of love that could be once heard. Let the cars, trucks and buses block the views of the pumping hearts that hold value to you both. Let the bystanders get through you both erasing every memory you guys once accumulated. What would you do as you stand on his block?

"Solè, why'd you stay?" "Because, Zaire... you the first thing that ever felt worth staying for." ❀ 🝳 ❀ Harlem held the noise. Solè gave Zaire the quiet. Zaire Knox, Harlem's quiet storm, known for his ties to the streets and a gaze that read people faster than they could lie to him. Respected. Feared. Loved. With scars buried deeper than his tattoos, he never planned to love soft. Until a Harlem vinyl shop left behind by his late grandfather forces him to slow down, to breathe, to find his real purpose in the world beyond the streets. Solè Sinclair, soft but unbreakable, raised by her father after loss. By day, she serves warmth behind the counter of a café. By night, she disappears into her art, trying to paint the parts of herself no one ever sees. When their worlds cross, the city shifts. What starts off tense and unexpected turns tender. Together, they learn love can hold you just as fierce as the streets ever did, and softer, too. But love in Harlem always asks one question: what are you willing to risk when the heart wants more than the streets ever offered? A Harlem story. A hood love. A soft place to land. ❀ 🝳 ❀