Elena Vasquez hated walking home late at night.
The dimly lit streets of Brooklyn weren't exactly safe, especially for a college student with nothing but a worn-out pepper spray canister in her bag. But her shift at the café had run long, and she was too broke to call an Uber.
She pulled her coat tighter around her body, picking up her pace. The sidewalks were empty, the only sounds coming from the distant hum of traffic and the occasional flickering streetlamp.
Then she heard it.
A sharp, muffled pop.
Elena froze. Her heartbeat slammed against her ribs. That wasn't a firecracker. It was too deep, too sharp, like a gunshot.
Another pop. A grunt. Something heavy hitting the pavement.
She should have turned around. Should have ignored it and kept walking.
But something in her gut twisted, a deep, nagging feeling she couldn't shake. Slowly, she edged toward the mouth of an alleyway, her breath coming in shallow pants.
That's when she saw him.
A man, slumped against a brick wall, his dark suit soaked in blood.
Elena clamped a hand over her mouth, panic screaming at her to run. But then she saw his eyes, steel-gray, sharp even in pain. He wasn't dead.
He was staring right at her.
"Walk away."
His voice was low, gravelly, filled with a quiet authority that made the hairs on her arms stand up. But there was something else beneath it, a flicker of warning, maybe even desperation.
Elena knew she should listen. Knew she should turn and pretend she never saw him.
But then she heard the sound of footsteps. More men. Getting closer.
A dark SUV idled at the end of the alley. Figures moved in the shadows, their voices sharp, hurried. Whoever had shot him wasn't done.
Elena should have left. Instead, she dropped to her knees beside him.
"You're losing a lot of blood."
A low chuckle rumbled from his chest. "No shit."
She tore off her scarf, pressing it against the wound near his ribs. He hissed at the contact but didn't push her away. His hand did, however, snap up to grip her wrist, strong despite his injury. "If you help me, you're making a mistake." His fingers tightened, as if giving her one last chance to leave. "You don't want to be part of this, sweetheart." "Sweetheart. The word slid over her skin like a slow drag of heat, but she ignored it.
"Shut up and let me stop the bleeding," she snapped, shaking off his hold.
For a second, his gaze darkened, like no one had ever dared to talk back to him before. Then, slowly, the corner of his lips tipped up.
"Feisty."
Elena didn't have time to respond.
The men were getting closer.
"Stay still," she whispered. Then she did the only thing she could think of, she pulled his half-conscious, bleeding body into the shadows with her, pressing him against the cold brick, hoping, praying, that whoever was coming wouldn't see them.
A voice called out.
"Find the body. The boss wants proof."
Elena's breath hitched. The man against her stiffened.
She didn't think. Didn't hesitate. She did something completely insane.
She kissed him.
His lips were cold. Blood-stained.
But Adrian Moretti didn't flinch.
Elena pressed her body against his, her hands sliding into his hair like they belonged there. She could feel the tension in his muscles, the way his breath hitched at the sudden closeness.
Footsteps passed by the alley.
"Nothing here."
The voices faded. The SUV's engine roared to life.
And then they were alone again.
Slowly, Elena pulled away, her face burning.
Adrian didn't move. Didn't blink. His silver eyes locked onto hers, unreadable, intense.
"You just saved my life," he murmured, his voice husky.
Elena swallowed. "Yeah. So?"
A slow, dangerous smirk curled on his lips. "That means you owe me now."
She scowled. "I think it's the other way around, asshole."
He chuckled. Then, without warning, he collapsed.
Elena cursed, catching his weight as best she could. He was heavy, all solid muscle and heat.
She had two choices: leave him here and hope he survived, or get him help.
She should have left.
Instead, she whispered a curse under her breath and dragged him toward her apartment.
And just like that, her life was never the same again.