I kissed my father’s best friend, and it kind of didn’t go well. Not only because he’s 18 years older than me - but he also didn’t like it. Not one bit. In my defense, I didn’t mean to fall for him. It just happened. Nathaniel Weaver is the most attractive man I’ve ever seen with enough charisma to blind the sun. He’s bigger than the world, owns half of it, and conquered the other half. He was forbidden. Wrong. So I totally got over him. Or so I told myself. Until we’re forced to get married.

A bet turned into a disaster. Sebastian Weaver is the star quarterback and the college’s heartthrob. Rich. Handsome. Bastard. Everyone’s attention flocked toward him, and all the girls dreamed of being with him. Not me. At least, not until he made a move on me. See, I thought I was stronger than Sebastian’s charms. I thought I could survive being his target. I thought wrong. Little did I know that he will make my most twisted fantasies come true. Fantasies I didn’t know existed...

In the mafia world, women don’t reign. I’m the exception of that rule. I didn’t choose this life. It chose me. I have a legacy to protect, a power to snatch, and no one will stop me. If an arranged marriage is what it’ll take to lead, then so be it. What I don’t count on is that my chosen husband happens to be a ghost from my past. Kyle Hunter. He was once my guard, my protector. Now, he’s after my kingdom. The road to the throne is paved with thorns, blood, and casualties. To win, I’ll risk it all. My heart included.

Nothing is fair in war. Jonathan King is every bit his last name. Powerful. Untouchable. Corrupted. He’s also my dead sister’s husband and way older than me. When I first met him as a clueless child, I thought he was a god. Now, I have to confront that god to protect my business from his ruthless grip. Little did I know that declaring a war on the king will cost me everything. When Jonathan covets something, he doesn’t only win, he conquers. Now, he has his sights on me.

I have a simple plan. Finish Royal Elite School and get into my dream university. One glance from the school’s king blows my plan up in smoke. One glance and he suffocates my air. One glance and he issues his death sentence. His first words spiral my life into irreparable chaos. “I will destroy you.” Everything about Aiden King is black. Black mind. Black heart. Black soul. I should’ve remained quiet and endured the time I have left. I didn’t. I made the irrevocable mistake of provoking the king on his throne.

I caught the attention of a monster. I didn’t ask for it. Didn’t even see it coming. But the moment I do, it’s too late. Killian Carson is a predator wrapped in sophisticated charm. He’s cold-blooded, manipulative, and savage. The worst part is that no one sees his devil side. I do. And that will cost me everything. I run, but the thing about monsters? They always chase.

My husband. My tormentor. The most notorious man in the city offers me a job. Act as his dead wife. Adrian Volkov isn’t the type of person who takes no for an answer. He commands with an iron fist and all his orders are met. When he approaches me with the offer, I have two options. Go to prison or put myself under his wrath. I choose to have a roof over my head. What’s so hard about acting, right? Wrong. The moment I step into his wife’s shoes, everything spirals out of control. My only way of survival is through Adrian. Or is it?

I was the girl no one looked at twice. Until they saw me. My whole life, no one has had my back. My parents are dead, my adoptive mother is a drug addict, and the mean girls on campus mock me for my scars. So when I end up desperate for money and out of options, I agree to sell the one thing I have left: my innocence. On the night I’m meant to give my body to a brutal Russian mobster, three men storm into the room like dark shadows and kill him before he can claim me. When they drag me from the blood-soaked bed, I’m certain they’re going to kill me too.

They say Cyrus Reed is ruthless. That he rules the underworld with an iron fist. A criminal. A murderer. A monster. He controlled fortunes and amassed empires. Our paths should never have crossed, but one poker game intertwined our fate. I woke up stranded on his island. Trapped. Forced to play a dangerous game of hate and lust. He said he took me to protect me. That he was saving me. But who will save me from him?

Charming, captivating, seductive—and a cold-blooded killer. I married the Pakhan of the Russian Bratva anyway. I had to, it was part of the deal. Now, I’m faking marital bliss as I tremble with fear, and I cannot wait to be out of the clutches of this ruthless man.