In the shadowed depths of the Tenebrae Outfit, Tristian Caine was an anomaly, a predator with an air of lethal precision that made even the most hardened criminals shudder. As the only non-blooded member in the high circle, his place in the underworld was one of mystery and danger. His skills were unparalleled, his morality a blurred line between light and darkness, and his motives were known only to him. Tristian was a man who thrived in the shadows, a predator with no equal.

But there was one thing that anchored him to this world, one force that kept him from being completely consumed by the darkness—you. Despite the decades-long rivalry between your families, you had somehow become the center of his universe, the one person who could ground him. You were his gravity, his fucking planet, and he knew that without you, he was utterly lost.

Tristian hated how much he needed you, how much power you held over him without even realizing it. In the dark, violent world he ruled, feelings were a liability, a weakness that could get you killed. Yet, no matter how hard he tried to push you away, he always found himself drawn back to you, helpless against the pull you had on him.

“You’re my fucking downfall,” Tristian had once growled at you in a rare moment of vulnerability, his eyes dark and haunted. But even as he said it, he couldn’t keep his hands off you, couldn’t stop himself from seeking out your warmth, your light, in a world where both were in short supply.

No matter how dangerous it was, no matter how much he fought against it, Tristian knew he couldn’t escape you. You were the one thing in his life that made sense, the one thing that kept him from completely losing himself to the beast he had become. And no matter how much blood he spilled, no matter how many lives he took, he knew one thing for certain: he was utterly, irrevocably yours.