Aria's POV
The study feels too small. Too quiet.
Dante kneels in front of me, those black eyes searching mine, and the weight of his confession crushes the air from my lungs.
That was you, I whisper again. In the alley. You're the one I saved.
I woke up in my family's private medical facility. His voice is rough. Raw. My father's people had intercepted the ambulance. Brought me home. But all I could remember was you. Your voice. Your hand in mine.
The memory hits me in pieces. That night three years ago, cutting through campus shortcuts because I was running late for my shift at the diner. Finding a stranger collapsed between dumpsters, blood pooling beneath him, barely conscious.
I should have just called 911 and left.
But he looked so scared. So young. His hand reached for mine, desperate.
So I took it.
Stay with me, I'd whispered, pressing my jacket against the worst wound. You're going to be okay. I promise. Just hold on.
I held his hand until the ambulance came. Rode with him to the hospital. Stayed until the doctors rushed him into surgery.
Then I left, because I had a shift and rent to pay and a life that didn't include dying strangers.
I never knew what happened to him.
I searched for you for weeks, Dante admits. Hospital records. Security cameras. Asked every nurse on staff. No one knew who you were.
I gave them a fake name. I'd been eighteen, scared, didn't want to get involved with whatever gang violence had put him in that alley. I just... I wanted to help. Then disappear.
But I couldn't let you disappear. Dante's hand lifts like he wants to touch my face, then drops. In my world, when someone saves your life, you owe them a debt. A life debt. Everything I am, everything I have—it belongs to you.
That's insane.
That's my family. His jaw clenches. We deal in debts and oaths and blood. You gave me my life back. How could I not spend it protecting yours?
So you found me.
It took six months. But yes. He doesn't look ashamed. Doesn't apologize. I found your apartment. Learned your schedule. Made sure you were safe.
That's stalking, Dante.
I know. The admission is quiet. Honest. I know it's wrong. Know I should have stayed away. But I couldn't. Every time I tried, I'd remember your hand in mine. Your voice promising I'd survive.
His intensity should terrify me. This confession should send me running.
Instead, something in my chest tightens.
You've been watching me for three years, I say slowly. And you never approached me. Never spoke to me. Why?
Because you saved me when I was nobody to you. Just a dying stranger. Dante's black eyes hold mine. I didn't want to ruin that. Didn't want you to know who I really am. What I really do.
A criminal.
My father's son, he corrects. But yes. I've killed people, Aria. Hurt people. Done things that would make you run screaming. His voice drops. I didn't want you to see that side of me. Didn't want to taint the one pure thing in my life—the memory of you saving me.
My throat tightens. Then why reveal it now?
Because someone's threatening you. And I can't protect you from the shadows anymore. He stands abruptly, pacing like a caged animal. When my father told me he was marrying your mother, I thought it was fate. A chance to actually meet you. Talk to you. Maybe... maybe something more.
But the Blood Oath.
Makes you forbidden. The word sounds like it tastes bitter. The one thing I want most in this world, and my family's law says I'll die for having it.
The confession hangs between us, heavy and dangerous.
I should tell him to stay away. Should demand he stop watching me, stop protecting me, stop looking at me like I'm the only thing that matters.
Instead, I ask, What happened in that alley? Why were you stabbed?
Dante's laugh is cold. Territory war. Rival family sent five men to kill me. I took out three before they got me. He touches his ribs absently, and I remember the scars I'd felt that night. I crawled into that alley to die. Accepted it. Then you appeared.
I was just cutting through campus.
You were an angel. The words are fierce. Absolute. My whole life, people only help me if there's something to gain. But you saved me for nothing. Expected nothing. You were just... good.
Tears prick my eyes. I'm not that good.
You're better than anyone in my world. He stops pacing, faces me. That's why I've been protecting you. Why I made those men who followed you disappear. Why I got rid of that guy who wouldn't leave you alone.
I remember Brad. The pre-med student who asked me out repeatedly, started showing up at my apartment uninvited. He vanished after Christmas break.
You made him transfer schools, I realize.
I made him understand that bothering you was hazardous to his health. Dante's expression is unapologetic. He's fine. Living in California. But he won't come near you again.
You had no right
I had every right! His control cracks. You saved my life! That means your life belongs to me to protect! That's how it works!
That's not how anything works! I stand, getting in his face. You can't just stalk someone for three years and call it protection! You can't manipulate my life without asking!
I didn't know how to ask. The admission is raw. Vulnerable. I didn't know how to approach you without ruining everything. Without making you see me as the monster I really am.
We're inches apart now. Close enough that I feel his breath. See the fear behind his intensity.
You're not a monster, I whisper.
Yes, I am. His voice cracks. I've done terrible things. Hurt people. Killed without mercy. I'm my father's weapon. The family executioner. The Devil's son.
But you saved me from those men.
Because you're mine. The possessiveness in his voice should scare me. You've been mine since you held my hand in that alley. Since you promised I wouldn't die alone. And I'm not giving you up.
Your father will kill us both.
I know.
The Blood Oath
I don't care about the oath. Dante's hand finally cups my face, thumb brushing my cheek. I care about you. And whoever left that rose, whoever's threatening you—I'll kill them. Even if it means starting a war within my own family.
The declaration should terrify me.
Instead, heat floods my veins.
You're insane, I breathe.
Probably. His lips curve slightly. But you're mine anyway.
The words settle between us like a brand. A claim.
And I should reject it. Should push him away.
But when he looks at me like I'm his entire world, I forget how to say no.
Before either of us can move—before I can process what this means—footsteps echo in the hallway outside.
We jump apart like we've been burned.
The door handle jiggles.
Dante? Isabella's voice, smooth as poison. Are you in there? Your father wants to see you.
Dante's expression goes blank. Emotionless. I'll be right out.
And Aria, dear—if you're in there, you should know breakfast is in thirty minutes. Vincent expects everyone to attend.
She knows. Somehow, she knows we're in here together.
Her footsteps fade down the hallway.
I stare at Dante, panic rising. She's going to tell your father.
Not yet. His jaw clenches. She's playing a game. Building evidence. She wants my father to catch us himself—makes it cleaner.
Then what do we do?
Dante pulls out his phone, types something quickly. I'm assigning protection. People I trust absolutely. They'll watch your room. Follow you. Make sure no one else leaves you surprises.
I don't need
You do. His black eyes lock on mine. Because whoever left that rose is just getting started. And I won't let them hurt you.
The intensity in his voice makes my chest ache.
Dante...
Go to breakfast. Act normal. Don't let Isabella see she's rattled you. He moves to the door, pauses. And Aria? Lock your door tonight. Keep your phone on. If anything happens—anything at all—you call me immediately.
Why would I call you?
His hand finds mine, squeezes once. Because whether you like it or not, I'm the only one in this house who wants to keep you alive.
Then he's gone, leaving me alone with a black rose, bleeding palms, and the terrifying realization that Dante Castellano might be telling the truth.
Someone in this family wants me dead.
And the man who's been stalking me for three years might be my only chance at survival.