“Can’t you?” the woman on the other side of the bed asked cautiously.Enzo only shook his head. He climbed out of bed with a sullen face and walked to the window, staring down at the Los Angeles skyline with a mix of anger and helplessness. Lately everything felt like it was falling apart.First came the humiliation at the auction banquet, he’d become the joke of the city’s young elite. Then Freya, who had been so eager to please him, suddenly flipped and cut him off. He’d wanted to ask her in person why she’d changed, and when she intended to sign over the Ramones Group shares she’d promised. Instead the Wilson family told him she was ill and wouldn’t see him. That only made him feel worse.Back home the Miller family business began collapsing, partners backing out, assets frozen, deals falling apart. Rumors said somebody with much more power had targeted them, no one wanted to be associated anymore. He’d even hired the Blue Tiger Crew to rough up Hudson, and then the gang refunded h

As the light in the room suddenly dimmed, Hudson turned around and saw Ivory closing the door.“What are you doing?” he asked, puzzled.“Closing the door!” she replied, matter-of-factly.“In broad daylight? Why?” Hudson frowned, clearly confused.Ivory’s beautiful eyes glared at him. “If I don’t close it, it’ll stay open! What if someone walks in suddenly? That’d be embarrassing. I’m not used to doing things with the door open.”It took him a second to realize what she meant. But when he caught sight of her flushed cheeks and shy, darting eyes, it clicked, and he immediately waved his hands.“Hey, no, no! You’ve got it wrong,” he said quickly, embarrassed. “What I want to show you isn’t... that. It’s this.”He pointed to the table.Ivory followed his finger and froze. On the table lay a pile of broken wood pieces. For a moment, she just stared, mortified. She had completely misunderstood him.Trying to hide her embarrassment, she took a breath and stepped closer. “What is this?”As sh

“What’s that supposed to mean? You playing games with me?”Captain Kim glared at Hudson, his thick hands curling into heavy fists that looked big enough to do real damage. For anyone else, that sight alone would’ve been intimidating.“That’s not it!” Hudson said quickly, pretending to look nervous. “Come on, man, I just don’t want to hand over the money before I’m sure I can even get upstairs. What if you take it and it turns out we can’t go up? How do I get my money back then?”“Impossible.”Kim shook his head firmly. “There’s nowhere in Romones Group I can’t go. Don’t worry about it.”Hudson shook his head again. “I’ll give you half now. Once I’m up on the thirtieth floor and see the view I came for, I’ll hand over the rest.”Kim hesitated for a moment. In the end, he figured the money would end up in his pocket anyway, so he nodded. “Fine.”After transferring fifty thousand, Kim led Hudson around to the back of the building and swiped them in through a service door. Inside the elev

The door to the security office wasn’t exactly soundproof. Every word the guards had said drifted right into the hallway, straight into the ears of Hudson and Kira.Kira’s face darkened as she stepped inside. She scanned the ten men gathered there and snapped, “You guys are unbelievable! The company treats you well, great pay, full benefits, and this is how you repay it? Are you even worthy of the Romones Group?”She slammed her folder onto the desk. “I thought Captain Kim was the only one doing this, but it turns out you were all in on it. Just like him, you’re fired. Every one of you.”The guards immediately stood, glaring at Hudson and Kira with hostility.“You again, you damn punk!” Captain Kim growled through gritted teeth. His jaw twitched with rage. First, Hudson had gotten him caught, and now, because of him, every one of his men had been dragged down. The resentment in his chest roared like a storm.The others clenched their fists, their eyes full of anger. Losing their easy

Hudson suddenly turned his gaze to one of the men, Jason. Something didn’t add up. There were supposed to be ten of them, yet only eight were caught. Two were missing, and judging by the terrified looks on these guys’ faces, they weren’t smart enough to plan the break-in themselves.He didn’t need to think hard to know who was behind it, Captain Kim. The man had to be hiding nearby, waiting for news.“What about him?” Hudson asked coldly, eyes narrowing.Jason blinked, pretending not to understand. “Who?”Hudson’s patience wore thin. “The guy named Kim. He’s the one who planned this, right?”Jason shook his head firmly. “I don’t know what you’re talking about! We planned this together. It’s got nothing to do with Captain Kim!”It was a lie, and Hudson knew it. Jason was trying to protect Captain Kim, hoping to take the fall alone. Maybe Kim had helped him before, maybe he’d promised to take care of Jason’s family if things went south.But Hudson wasn’t in the mood for loyalty games.H