(BOOK 1 OF MAFIA LOVE SERIES) [COMPLETED & EDITING] * "Arie," he whispered, his smile dropping as he closed the distance between us. "I'm sor..." My right hand met his left cheek brutally, stopping all that he had to say. "How dare you?" I hissed, landing another smack on the same spot. "How could you do this to me?" I raised my hand up again to place another one, but he caught my wrist before I could do so. "Plan your next move very carefully," he spoke in a low, belligerent tone tightening his grip on my wrist, daring me to slap him again. Pain jolted from the area, forcing tears to sting at the corner of my eyes. "Or what?" I scowled at him. "You don't want to find out." He took a step closer, staring into my eyes. "And don't tempt me!" * Today was the day it all started. Everything began to fall apart. It twisted me, threw me against the wall, and ripped my sanity and innocence to shreds. I never thought I'd go through it, but there I was in the middle of it all. Arie Noelle is a wise, strong-willed girl with a good heart, but a misfortunate incident leading up to others tears her apart. What happens when she finds herself on the radar of Leo Bonferroni, a ruthless mafia leader hiding behind the mask of a sexy tycoon, who is not only intrigued but also smitten by her? However, they begin to change each other, molding into something else. She does things she never dreamt of doing. He places the world at her feet, but will she accept it or kick it away in fear? The rising tension between the two kills her inside, but will she give into the sexy temptation walking around with an irresistible smirk that mushes her into a puddle? Will they ever find her destroyer or will she end up on the noose herself? Warning: Strong language, sexual content, rape, and graphic violence.

He began walking over to me. This is it. I'm dead. I saw his shoes come into my view as I was looking down, hair covering my face. "Look at me." He growled out. I started to cry, too afraid to look. He grasped my chin and lifted my face to meet his. I mentally gasped. It's the guy from last night. His eyes held surprise too, before anger erupted in them. I cowered back in fear of what he might do. "Who did this to your face?" He growled. I started to cry again and shake. "Him." I whispered and gave a small nod toward the guy who hit me.

His body was as powerful and sexual as I remembered it, he had gotten another tattoo on his shoulder since the last time, a few more scars then I remembered on his chest. His back rippled with muscles as he pulled on a fresh white shirt, my eyes transfixed as he took his time buttoning it up. Somehow it was almost more of a turn on watching him put on his clothes than him taking them off, almost. He wiped the blood off his hands with a kitchen apron in a slow steady motion and I pressed myself back against the wall when his eyes focused on me. My eyes flittered to the back door and I battled with myself on whether or not I could make it before he caught me, I couldn't. He tossed the apron over an empty sink and stalked towards me slowly, a predator in every sense of the word and my eyes drifted to the bloody mess of a man on the kitchen floor, was that going to be me in a second? He stopped just in front of me and reached out to stroke my cheek and I closed my eyes, leaning into his touch despite knowing better. My eyes snapped open when he grabbed my chin tightly and forced me to look at him, was this it, was he going to snap my neck and dispose of my body now? "Touch another man again, and I will kill you" his voice was low and promising and I swallowed as he let go of my chin, pressing a rough kiss to my lips before grabbing my elbow and dragging me out of the kitchen. So much for that arrangement...

Deadly assassins Allegra and Ace have been trying in vain to kill each other for years. With a mutual enemy threatening their mafias, they find themselves in an unexpected alliance, and soon discover killing each other isn't the only temptation they need to resist... ****** Allegra Grey is poised to be the next great American mafia leader, and she's more than living up to the name. A skilled assassin, there's only one target who's ever gotten away from her-suave, sinfully handsome Ace De Luca, heir to the Italian mafia and the Greys' biggest rival. When both mafias are faced with a dangerous threat, they're forced to work together to protect their families, and unexpected sparks fly. Allegra definitely isn't one to sleep with the enemy, especially an arrogant womanizer like Ace. But there's an undeniable electricity between them and Allegra's not sure it's all hatred. Ace may be bad news, but Allegra's never been afraid of a little danger. As the fire they're playing with grows to a scorching blaze, one thing is clear: trying to kill each other may have been difficult, but resisting this intense chemistry will be impossible. [[Word count: 100,000 - 150,000]] Cover designed by Regina Dionela Content/trigger warning: Contains mature themes, violence and gore