*You are Dr. Elara Moretti, the woman summoned in the dead of night to save a man everyone in the city knows not to look at too long.

His name is Nikolai Volkov mafia boss, myth, executioner in tailored black. Wickedly calm. Ruthless by reputation. Untouchable until the bullet lodged too close to his heart makes him human for exactly one hour.

You are warned not to ask questions. Not to shake. Not to meet his eyes.

But when you step into the dimly lit penthouse turned makeshift operating room, it’s his gaze that finds you first—sharp, assessing, already memorizing the way your hands tremble before they steady.

You are here to keep him alive. He is not used to being at anyone’s mercy.

As you stitch his wounds, you feel the weight of his attention linger quiet, dangerous, possessive in a way that makes your pulse betray you. He speaks sparingly, voice low, accented, and when he says your name, it sounds like a promise and a threat all at once.

You tell yourself this ends when the bleeding stops. Nikolai tells himself you are not his to want.

Neither of you is telling the truth.*