"I asked a dangerous stranger to kiss me to make my cheating ex jealous—unaware he was a feared Russian mob boss."

"Down!" Adrian barked.

With lightning speed, Adrian pulled me toward the heavy oak bar, covering my body completely with his broad frame as he drew a sleek, matte-black sidearm from his shoulder holster.

THWIP! THWIP! THWIP!

Suppressed rounds bit into the wooden bar above us, sending splinters flying through the air.

Adrian moved with fluid, lethal grace. He didn't flinch, nor did he panic. He leaned out from behind the mahogany counter, squeezed his trigger three times with mechanical precision, and eliminated two of the incoming attackers before they could clear the main aisle.

Standing near the kitchen doors, two of Adrian’s private security team members engaged the remaining hitmen, cutting them down in a rapid exchange of suppressed fire.

Within forty-five seconds, the restaurant was dead silent again, save for the hum of the refrigeration units and the rain pouring through the broken glass doors.

Adrian stood up slowly, keeping his body positioned between me and the rear exit. He checked his magazine, holstered his weapon, and reached out his broad, calloused hand to help me up from the floor.

"Who were those people?!" I gasped, my chest heaving as I looked at the fallen men near the back hallway.

"The Volkov syndicate," Adrian replied flatly, his dark eyes scanning the room for secondary threats. "They have been tracking my movements across the city for three days. My arrival here was leaked."

He looked down at me—taking in my trembling hands, my rain-dampened dress, and the fierce, unyielding courage lingering behind my hazel eyes.

"They saw you kiss me, Camilla," Adrian explained softly, his hand coming up to gently frame my jawline, his thumb stroking my cheekbone with mesmerizing tenderness. "In my world, anyone seen beside me becomes a target. You cannot go back to your apartment tonight."

I looked into his slate-gray eyes, realizing that in my desperate attempt to humiliate my ex-boyfriend, I had accidentally stepped into the center of a deadly war.