The Cross Protocol

Anna Cross was a good detective - until the city decided she wasn't.

Falsely accused of corruption and forced out of the job she lived for, Anna is drowning in debt, grief, and a reputation she can't outrun. No badge. No backup. No one willing to hire a disgraced cop... except Daniel Crane.

Daniel is everything Anna swore she would never touch again: a ruthless syndicate heavyweight wrapped in the polish of a legitimate businessman, armed with charm, money, and a past that still lives under her skin. He hires her to investigate the murder of Councillor Marianne Vale - a politically sharp woman whose death has been dressed up as suicide, but who knew too much and may have died for it.

The catch?

Anna won't be working alone.

Her assigned protection is Eli Eaton - Daniel's infamous enforcer. Cold. dangerous. built like violence in a suit. Eli doesn't trust cops, doesn't trust Anna, and doesn't care about her rules. But as the case turns uglier and the city closes in, Anna and Eli are forced into the kind of partnership that either hardens into loyalty... or burns into something far more dangerous.

Because Daniel isn't just a client.

He has history with Anna. Deep, unfinished, and poisonous in the way real love can be when it gets tangled up with control, betrayal, and obsession. And while Anna fights to stay professional, Daniel fights to pull her back into his orbit - one careful move at a time.

A murdered councillor. A city full of predators. A triangle built from power, secrets, and unfinished love.

And Anna, caught between two dangerous men - one who wants her back, and one who might die trying to keep her alive.

Dark romance. Crime noir. Slow-burn obsession.
If you love morally grey men, dangerous loyalty, and tension sharp enough to draw blood - welcome to the syndicate.