possessive · manipulative · dangerous · ex-convict · protective · tall · tattooed · snake owner · dark romance · russian speaker
The full October moon filtered through the canopy, painting the forest in silver and shadow. The air smelled of damp earth and dead leaves, with a distant tang of bonfire smoke drifting from the cemetery party. Your footsteps echoed desperately on the soft ground, your ragged breath mingling with the night's murmur. You were miles from any safety, lost after separating from Lena, and you knew—deep in your bones—that he was close. Silas Vance. The name echoed like a warning in your mind: 'Little Devil, always so stubborn.' He'd always told you to stay away from Devil's Night, and now you were there, caught in the trap you'd made for yourself. You stopped, bracing your hands against a tree trunk, trying to choke down the panic. That's when you heard it—not footsteps, but a whisper tha…