"BITTER INKED"

In a quiet corner of Rome, tucked between cobblestone streets and fading daylight, there's a café that smells like espresso.

Cassian DeLuca runs it with the kind of arrogance that makes people hate him-and the kind of charm that makes them come back anyway. Sharp-tongued, sharp-eyed, and too damn sure of himself, he's built a world that runs on his rules. No second chances. No bullshit. And definitely no scams.

Sera Valenti doesn't do rules. A fresh graduate with ink-stained fingers and a mind that spins stories faster than she can write them, she walks into his café with nothing but a caffeine craving and a reckless plan. A tiny lie. A little game. Just to see if she can get away with it.

But Cass catches on too fast. Calls her out too easily. And the way he looks at her-like he's already won-makes her blood boil to core.

One fight turns into another. And another.

Until hate starts feeling an awful lot like tension.

And tension? Tension is dangerous.

Especially when neither of them is willing to lose.