(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.

"Never call a girl a bitch," I glared into his eyes as he opened them, piercing into me, the bright blue drink I had just poured over him still dripping from his dark hair. "Or she just might act like one." I gave him one last sarcastic smile before pushing by him and walking away, practically strutting. Well, this year will be fun... • • • • Crystal Summers; a self-proclaimed expert in all things sarcastic and the human embodiment of destructive decisions. Trying to get away from her troubled past, she moves with her mom to California to start a new life, and potentially not screw this one up. There, she quickly meets Scarlett and Savanah, her new-found partners in crime, and her life finally begins to feel normal again for the first time in years. But she just so happens to also collide with the school's sexy, notorious jackass, Ashton Monroe.. and his pack of asswipes. She loathes him, and the feeling is mutual. But as the poets say, the line separating love and hate is a very thin one. And often times, when two people hate each other, it can grow into much more. Hopeless devotion, if you will... • • • • !!!TRIGGER WARNING!!! • slight mention(s) of suicidal concepts • substance abuse, addiction, anxiety, PTSD • sexual assault, domestic abuse • strong language and mature scenes • • • •