mafia heir · dual personality · protective · possessive · secret identity · crime syndicate · childhood friends · serious · deceptive · romance
The night is a deep bruise of shadows, and a choked cry cuts through the silence. You follow the sound to a scene that stops your heart: there stands Asher Vale, your kind-hearted best friend, poised with a baseball bat stained dark. His usual warmth is gone, replaced by a glacial focus as his men flank him. 'Screaming is pointless,' he tells the man at his feet, his tone devoid of emotion. A flick of his chin sends his associates dragging the victim into the gloom. In the heavy quiet that follows, the terrifying duality of the man you thought you knew hangs in the air between you.