Los Angeles is a city of shadows, and Adrian "The Reaper" Valenti has spent years hunting the man who destroyed his family. Cold, ruthless, and relentless, he has built his empire on blood and vengeance. But when his war leads him to **Valeria DeLuca-the daughter of his greatest enemy-his plans take an unexpected turn. Valeria has spent her life in a golden cage, raised to be a queen in her father's underworld. But when Adrian kidnaps her, she learns a truth more brutal than any captivity: her father planned to kill her all along. Betrayed and furious, she strikes a dangerous deal with the very man who swore to destroy her family. Together, they bring down the DeLuca empire. But when the dust settles and the bodies fall, Valeria realizes that vengeance has a price-and she refuses to let Adrian, or anyone else, control her fate. She walks away from the only man who ever truly understood her. But in the underworld, no one ever really escapes. And as whispers of a new power rising in the city spread, one thing becomes clear-Valeria DeLuca didn't leave the game. She just started playing by her own rules.
The city never truly sleeps. Beneath the glow of neon signs and the hum of expensive cars, violence brews in the shadows.
Adrian Valenti watches from the rooftop of a high-rise, his piercing icy-blue eyes locked on the estate in the hills-the DeLuca mansion. The house where his family was betrayed and slaughtered fifteen years ago.
His grip tightens around the pistol in his hand. Tonight, he begins his revenge.
A low voice crackles in his earpiece. Lorenzo.
"Guards are positioned at the entrance. Back gate is unguarded. Your move, boss."
Adrian doesn't respond-he doesn't need to. Lorenzo knows the plan.
He takes one last look at the mansion before disappearing into the night.
Tonight, he comes for Salvatore DeLuca.
Inside the DeLuca Mansion
Valeria DeLuca moves through the grand ballroom with effortless grace, a mask of control hiding the unease curling in her stomach.
Her father's latest business deal is being celebrated, but she knows the truth-it's a cover for something darker.
She grew up surrounded by criminals in expensive suits, men who shake hands over champagne while ordering deaths in the next breath.
Her father, Salvatore DeLuca, is the worst of them.
But tonight, something feels... off.The guards seem uneasy. Conversations are hushed. A cold shiver runs down her spine.
Something is coming.
She just doesn't know what.
The Reaper Strikes
Adrian slips through the shadows, taking down two guards with silent precision.
His path is clear-straight to Salvatore's office.
He moves up the staircase, past familiar hallways-the same halls where he once lived, before DeLuca's betrayal turned his world to ash.
His fingers twitch against the gun in his hand.
One bullet. That's all it will take to end this.
But as he rounds the final corner, he isn't met with Salvatore.
Instead, he comes face-to-face with her.
Valeria DeLuca.
Dark waves of hair, golden eyes that burn with defiance-a princess raised in a kingdom of blood.
She lifts a gun, hands steady. She isn't afraid.
But Adrian?He doesn't hesitate.
In a single motion, he knocks the gun from her hands, slamming her against the wall. Her breath catches, but she doesn't beg. Doesn't plead.She fights.
She kicks, trying to free herself. Adrian dodges easily, twisting her arms behind her back. She gasps-angry, breathless.
"Let me go," she hisses.
Adrian leans in, his voice a low, deadly whisper.
"Not tonight, princess."
Before she can react, darkness takes her.
He catches her body before it hits the floor. Lorenzo's voice echoes in his earpiece.
"Boss?"
Adrian lifts Valeria into his arms, his expression unreadable.
"Change of plans," he says. "We take her."
Because killing Salvatore DeLuca?
That would be mercy.
Instead, Adrian will take his most valuable possession.
And when Valeria wakes up?
She'll realize she belongs to him now.
Adrian carried Valeria's unconscious body through the halls of the DeLuca estate, his footsteps silent against the marble floors.
His pulse was steady-as if he hadn't just taken the daughter of his greatest enemy.
The mansion was still alive with the hum of celebration below, oblivious to the war that had just begun.
Lorenzo's voice crackled through his earpiece. "Adrian, we need to move. Now."
Adrian didn't need the warning. Time was running out.
He stepped onto the balcony and glanced at the estate's perimeter. Guards patrolled near the front, but the back gardens? Unguarded.
Exactly as planned.
With practiced ease, he descended the vines covering the side of the mansion, Valeria's limp body held against him. She was light, smaller than he expected. It didn't matter. She was leverage. A weapon against her father.
By the time he reached the ground, Lorenzo was waiting by the open car door, his expression tight.
"Shit," Lorenzo muttered, eyes flicking to Valeria. "Tell me you didn't just-"
Adrian shoved her into the backseat. "Drive."
Lorenzo exhaled sharply but obeyed. The tires screeched against the pavement as they sped away from the estate, vanishing into the dark Los Angeles streets.
Behind them, the DeLuca mansion loomed in the distance, untouched-for now.
But by the time Salvatore DeLuca realized what had happened?
It would be too late.
The Awakening
The first thing Valeria felt was cold.
The second? Pain.
Her head throbbed, her limbs felt heavy, and the faint scent of gunpowder and leather filled her nose.
She forced her eyes open.The dim glow of a single overhead light illuminated the space around her-a warehouse, empty except for a table, a chair, and the man standing before her.
Her heart pounded as her gaze landed on him.
The man from the mansion.
The man who had taken her.
She was tied to a chair, her wrists bound behind her back. Panic flared-but she forced it down.
Valeria DeLuca had been raised in a world of criminals. She knew fear would get her nowhere.
Instead, she squared her shoulders, leveling him with a glare.
"Untie me," she demanded.
Adrian smirked, his blue eyes cold, unreadable.
"You're in no position to be making demands, princess."
The nickname made her blood boil.
She knew who he was now-Adrian Valenti.
The name her father had erased from history.
Her stomach twisted. She had heard the stories.
The Valentis were once one of the strongest crime families in Los Angeles-until her father betrayed them, had them slaughtered.
Now, only Adrian remained.
And he had just kidnapped her.
Valeria lifted her chin. "If you're going to kill me, do it now."
Adrian's smirk deepened, as if amused. "Killing you would be too easy."
Valeria's heart pounded, but she kept her voice steady. "Then what do you want?"
Adrian crouched in front of her, his gaze sharp. Dangerous.
"I want your father to suffer," he murmured.
Something cold slithered down her spine.
She knew her father was ruthless. But for the first time, she realized just how many enemies he had created.
How many ghosts haunted him.
Valeria didn't flinch. "If you think taking me will break him, you don't know him at all."
Adrian tilted his head, studying her. "Maybe. But I know men like him. He values power. Control." His lips curled into something dark. "And I just took both away from him."
Valeria clenched her jaw, refusing to let him see the flicker of doubt in her eyes.
Because deep down, she knew the truth.
Her father would not come for her.
Not because he cared about her. But because her disappearance was a weakness he could not afford.
She swallowed hard, forcing steel into her voice. "You're playing a dangerous game."
Adrian stood, his presence towering over her.
"So are you, princess."
And the worst part?
She wasn't sure which of them would win.
Elias is lost-haunted by a past he can't escape and desperate for something real in a world that's forgotten him. One fateful night, a mysterious club and a pair of burning crimson eyes change everything. Lucien is ancient, dangerous, and devastatingly beautiful. A vampire bound by laws and shadows, he's sworn never to love again. But when Elias walks into his world, desire threatens to consume them both. Drawn into a dark romance of blood, obsession, and forbidden longing, Elias finds himself craving more than just Lucien's touch-he wants his soul. But in the vampire underworld, love comes at a deadly price.
In the dazzling world of fame and fortune, power is everything-and love is just another game. Beatrice, Hollywood's reigning queen, has spent years crafting her perfect empire. Fierce, cunning, and irresistible, she plays by her own rules. But when she finds herself entangled in a secret relationship with the industry's most desired leading man, Lucas, her thirst for control takes a dangerous turn. Lucas is charming, successful, and emotionally torn. He loves Amy, the sweet and devoted woman who believes in his goodness. But his undeniable attraction to Beatrice pulls him into a web of deception, where passion and ambition collide. When Beatrice drops a bombshell-she's pregnant-Lucas is forced into a flash marriage to protect his career. But behind closed doors, it's a battle of dominance, love, and betrayal. Amy, heartbroken yet determined, won't go down without a fight. As she manipulates the media to expose the truth, Beatrice moves to secure her ultimate victory-complete control over Lucas. In this war of love and power, secrets will be exposed, revenge will be served, and no one will emerge unscathed. When love turns into obsession, who really wins? ✨ A dark and steamy fantasy romance filled with passion, power plays, and shocking betrayals.
In the high-stakes world of billionaires and betrayal, "Tangled In Desire" tells the story of Zoey, a woman whose life of comfort shatters when her family's empire collapses. Desperate to salvage their legacy, she's thrust into an arranged marriage with Eric, a seductive yet enigmatic playboy. A chance encounter leads to a night of unbridled passion between them, their identities concealed. When fate forces them into a union, the revelation of their prior intimacy ignites a storm of resentment and desire. Publicly, they play the role of the perfect couple; privately, they're locked in a battle of wills. As Zoey uncovers Eric's lingering ties to a former lover, she embarks on a daring quest for revenge, setting off a chain of events that tests their resolve. But when an unforeseen accident threatens to tear them apart forever, both must confront the depth of their feelings. "Tangled In Desire " is a tale of passion and redemption, where two souls must navigate the treacherous waters of love and trust to find their true path.
It was supposed to be a marriage of convenience, but Carrie made the mistake of falling in love with Kristopher. When the time came that she needed him the most, her husband was in the company of another woman. Enough was enough. Carrie chose to divorce Kristopher and move on with her life. Only when she left did Kristopher realize how important she was to him. In the face of his ex-wife’s countless admirers, Kristopher offered her 20 million dollars and proposed a new deal. “Let’s get married again.”
If there was something very significant the Aquila's were known for, it is the ability to get whatever they set their eyes on. Fate has been cruel to them recently since the diagnosis of an ailment on the heir of the Aquila family's , Enzo Aquila, leading to the impromptu blind date organized by his mother for him to an unknown girl, Camila, a young vibrant college drop out residing with her grandmother since the death of her parents. Life hasn't been fair to her either, so when her grandmother comes home one day and announces to her about a blind date with a certain wealthy goon, she knew she had no choice but to accept or risk being thrown out of her comfort zone. What has fate designed for these two people who met due to unfortunate incidents thrust at them by fate? And how are they going to endure to break down every barrier to reach their happy ever after?
Corinne devoted three years of her life to her boyfriend, only for it to all go to waste. He saw her as nothing more than a country bumpkin and left her at the altar to be with his true love. After getting jilted, Corinne reclaimed her identity as the granddaughter of the town’s richest man, inherited a billion-dollar fortune, and ultimately rose to the top. But her success attracted the envy of others, and people constantly tried to bring her down. As she dealt with these troublemakers one by one, Mr. Hopkins, notorious for his ruthlessness, stood by and cheered her on. “Way to go, honey!”
Loraine was a dutiful wife to Marco since they got married three years ago. However, he treated her like trash. Nothing she did softened his heart. One day, Loraine got fed up with it all. She asked him for a divorce and left him to enjoy with his mistress. The elites looked at her like she was deranged. "Are you out of your mind? Why are you so willing to divorce him?" "It's because I need to return home to get a billion-dollar fortune. Besides, I don't love him anymore," Loraine replied with a smile. They all laughed at her. Some believed that the divorce affected her mentally. It wasn't until the next day that they realized she wasn't fibbing. A woman was suddenly declared the world's youngest female billionaire. It turned out to be Loraine! Marco was shocked to the bone. When he met his ex-wife again, she was a changed person. A group of handsome young men surrounded her. She was smiling at them all. The sight made Marco's heart ache severely. Putting his pride aside, he tried to win her back. "Hello, love. I see that you are a billionaire now. You shouldn't be with suckers who just want your money. How about you come back to me? I'm a billionaire too. Together, we can build a strong empire. What do you say?" Loraine squinted at her ex-husband with her lips curled in disgust.
Rena got into an entanglement with a big shot when she was drunk one night. She needed Waylen's help while he was drawn to her youthful beauty. As such, what was supposed to be a one-night stand progressed into something serious. All was well until Rena discovered that Waylen's heart belonged to another woman. When his first love returned, he stopped coming home, leaving Rena all alone for many nights. She put up with it until she received a check and farewell note one day. Contrary to how Waylen expected her to react, Rena had a smile on her face as she bid him farewell. "It was fun while it lasted, Waylen. May our paths never cross. Have a nice life." But as fate would have it, their paths crossed again. This time, Rena had another man by her side. Waylen's eyes burned with jealousy. He spat, "How the hell did you move on? I thought you loved only me!" "Keyword, loved!" Rena flipped her hair back and retorted, "There are plenty of fish in the sea, Waylen. Besides, you were the one who asked for a breakup. Now, if you want to date me, you have to wait in line." The next day, Rena received a credit alert of billions and a diamond ring. Waylen appeared again, got down on one knee, and uttered, "May I cut in line, Rena? I still want you."
Kallie, a mute who had been ignored by her husband for five years since their wedding, also suffered the loss of her pregnancy due to her cruel mother-in-law. After the divorce, she learned that her ex-husband had quickly gotten engaged to the woman he truly loved. Holding her slightly rounded belly, she realized that he had never really cared for her. Determined, she left him behind, treating him as a stranger. Yet, after she left, he scoured the globe in search of her. When their paths crossed once more, Kallie had already found new happiness. For the first time, he pleaded humbly, "Please don't leave me..." But Kallie's response was firm and dismissive, cutting through any lingering ties. "Get lost!"