Zahir "Zah" Creed has always been the quietest and most calculated of his brothers-the one who watches longer, thinks deeper, and moves last because his moves end things. After surviving a gunshot wound that should've taken him out, Zah's mindset hardens into something darker, colder, and brutally precise. He now runs the Creed family's underground operations with an iron hand and zero tolerance for mistakes. Loyalty buys protection, money, power-everything a person could want. Betrayal buys a grave. Emotions are a liability he buried a long time ago... until the one woman capable of unraveling him resurfaces and reminds him exactly where his weakness lives. Celeste Jones is Atlanta's top defense attorney-polished, brilliant, and born into a family that planned her entire life before she ever got a say. From her education to her engagement, everything has been carefully curated to fit her parents' idea of success. She's engaged to Darrell Harris, a fellow lawyer who looks perfect on paper but hides who he really is beneath a well-crafted persona. Celeste knows something is wrong, but years of obligation and expectation have taught her how to swallow her instincts. That is, until a call pulls her back into a past she was never allowed to choose. At one point in her life, Zahir Creed was all she knew. Their bond was intense, consuming, and dangerous-so dangerous that her parents made sure to tear them apart before it could ruin everything they'd built for her. Now Zah is back, darker, more powerful, and no longer willing to stay in the shadows of her life. The man she once loved is now the man her world should fear, and he's making it clear he isn't leaving this time. As old feelings collide with present danger, Celeste is forced to choose between the life that was designed for her and the man who has always owned the parts of her she's never been able to control.

At just twenty-five, Kairo Ellis is a nationally ranked UFC fighter whose name alone rattles cages. Not because he talks trash or plays to the crowd-but because he's deaf. Silent, volatile, and notoriously unapproachable, Kairo keeps the world at arm's length, choosing isolation over connection. Years of being misunderstood have carved him into something hard and unyielding, and somewhere along the way, silence stopped being a limitation and became a shield. When a new contract mandates that he accept a live-in interpreter, Kairo is livid. He doesn't want help. He doesn't want company. He definitely doesn't want someone in his space. That is... until he sees her. At twenty-two, Sariyah Monroe has always led with her heart. Brilliant and driven, she graduated early and poured herself into her career after a devastating breakup with the man she believed was her forever. When an unexpected offer lands in her lap-one that comes with life-changing money and a confidentiality clause she barely has time to question-she accepts, unaware that the job will place her in the orbit of a man forged by pain and silence. From the moment they meet, Kairo is cold, rude, and closed off, but Sariyah refuses to be intimidated. Instead, she becomes determined to understand him, not just his language, but the man behind it. What begins as a forced arrangement turns into something neither of them was prepared for. In the quiet between words and the space between touches, walls start to crack. As Kairo fights opponents in the cage and demons outside of it, Sariyah finds herself becoming his anchor-and the one thing he never knew he needed. Together, they discover that sometimes love doesn't need to be spoken to be heard, and the most dangerous fights are the ones that force you to let someone in.

Fazion Creed was the wildfire of the Creed brothers-the youngest, the most reckless, the one who swore up and down that love would never catch him. He thrived on chaos, fast nights, faster women, and the freedom of never answering to anybody's soft feelings. In his own words, he was born a bachelor and planned to die one, no matter who crossed his path. But fate has a wicked sense of humor. One impulsive night with his brother's wife's best friend flips his entire world upside down. What was supposed to be nothing more than heat and adrenaline becomes the moment that stalks him, haunts him, rewires him. Suddenly the man who lived for the streets and the spotlight finds himself thinking about things he's never let himself want-forever, loyalty, a woman he can't shake even when he tries. Fazion was never looking for love... But love found him anyway, and it refuses to let go. Armani Rose is a full-time respiratory nurse with a soft heart, sharp instincts, and a ride-or-die loyalty that makes her the perfect best friend to Rumi and an even better godmother to their little one. She works hard, loves harder, and keeps her world clean and steady... until one reckless birthday night knocks her balance clean out of her hands. What should've been a harmless "one time and never again" slip-up turns into Fazion Creed tattooing himself onto her reality. She swore she'd forget him by sunrise, but he keeps showing up-leaning in her doorway like he owns the place, sliding into her days, popping up in her space with that wild grin like she already belongs to him. He's claiming her without permission, pushing past every boundary she tries to rebuild, refusing to give her the distance she swears she needs. Armani doesn't know whether to cuss him out, run away, or let him keep pulling her into the fire he carries in his chest. Because Fazion isn't budging. And deep down, she's not sure she wants him to.

Reentry Case 007: Male, 37, assault with intent to kill, parole conditions strict. Not to be left alone with female staff.

cav·ern·ous /ˈkavərnəs/ adjective - "in too deep." *old, don't read.*

"See I'm a killer, but I got feelings. I catch you with him, I just might kill him." - Von. "Fuckin' on someone else and textin' like you want me, disrespectful." - Kentrell. *very old & cringy don't read omg*

When no one talks to you anymore or even sees you, you wonder, what's the point? I could move after high school, I could start over, but it wouldn't change anything. I would still be that awkward girl. The one that hides in the shadows to stay out of people's way. I always sit in the back corner near the window in the classroom. I like to look outside toward the woods, especially when it's raining and the raindrops trail down the window. I watch their path from the top and all the way down to the bottom where they disappear. I wish I could disappear. --------------------------------------------------- This is a werewolf story. It contains mature content, sexual scenes, suacidal thoughts and little bit of violence. Remember to vote and let me know what you think :)

"You trust me?" he asked, eyes turning soft once they made contact. "Maj, I-I-" "I said do you trust me, Lucky?" he repeated, voice hard. "...yes," she breathed out, and his next words came without hesitation, sending a chill down her spine. "Then shoot."

kis·met /ˈkizmit,ˈkizˌmet/ noun destiny; fate. how do you know when you've met your soulmate?

"Don't worry baby, you know that you got me," Sequel/Spinoff for Kismet