- 4 weeks ago
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Whether it’s the allure of wealth, the danger of the underworld, or the beauty of love against all odds — Ashley’s Stories brings you tales that are bold, emotional, and unforgettable.
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Short filmTranscript
00:00I'm standing in the middle of a Los Angeles grocery store parking lot, clutching a cart full of dented clearance cans like I'm protecting precious jewels.
00:08This is what rock bottom looks like in broad, unforgiving daylight.
00:11Me, sweaty, underpaid, and praying no one recognizes me from the viral video that tanked my week.
00:18I made one stupid joke, one harmless, sarcastic, I am so done with being broke joke.
00:24Dear universe, I said to my cracked phone camera, I need a rich man.
00:29Preferably the kind who can pay off my student loans and maybe buy me a grilled cheese that isn't from the dollar menu.
00:35I posted it, laughed at it, forgot about it.
00:38Then a man duetted it, the kind of man whose face shouldn't be on TikTok unless he's starring in a limited series about breaking hearts or continents.
00:46He didn't laugh, he didn't smile, he just said, in the deepest, quietest, most dangerous voice I've ever heard,
00:54Your wish, my turn.
00:55Millions of views later, my notifications are a wildfire.
01:00Half the comments think it's a prank.
01:02The other half say I'm about to vanish off the face of the planet.
01:06The worst part?
01:07I didn't even know his name then.
01:09I do now.
01:10Everyone does.
01:12Cassian Vero, infamous, untouchable, obscenely wealthy Mafia Don of the Vero Syndicate.
01:19A name that makes businessmen sweat.
01:20And senators pretend they've never heard of him.
01:23He owns islands, ranches, beach houses, private jets that look like entire hotels, and a reputation that borders on myth.
01:32And apparently, he duets TikToks.
01:35I shove my cart toward the curb, trying to breathe like a normal human who isn't being stalked by the internet.
01:41My phone keeps buzzing like it's possessed.
01:43I mutter.
01:44Universe, I take it back.
01:46I didn't mean a rich man who could buy the moon.
01:48Too late.
01:51I freeze.
01:52That voice.
01:54That impossible, unmistakable voice.
01:57I turn.
01:58And there he is.
02:00All six-plus feet of sunlit intimidation.
02:03Cassian Vero stands beside a black SUV that looks like it came straight from a billionaire's catalog listing.
02:09He's dressed in a crisp white button-down, sleeves rolled, chest broad, and carved like a warning.
02:15The kind of man who makes daylight feel brighter, somehow sharper.
02:19His eyes are unreadable behind black sunglasses, but I swear they're staring straight through me.
02:24My lungs forget their job.
02:26My sarcasm does not.
02:28Wow, I say.
02:29The algorithm really knows how to ruin someone's day.
02:33A corner of his mouth twitches like he's amused but refusing to show it.
02:37You made a request, he says calmly.
02:40I respond to requests.
02:42It was a joke, I snap.
02:44So was my duet.
02:46Really?
02:47I fold my arms.
02:48Because you didn't blink.
02:50Cassian tilts his head, studying me the way a man studies art he's already decided to buy.
02:55I don't blink often.
02:57Yeah, that tracks.
02:59He steps closer, and I swear the parking lot air changes temperature.
03:03Not hotter.
03:05Just sharper.
03:07Like the world is suddenly paying attention the way people do around power.
03:12Riley Marin.
03:13He says my name like he owns the letters.
03:16You've been hard to reach.
03:18Because I wasn't trying to be reached.
03:21You went viral.
03:23Not my fault.
03:24Everything is someone's fault.
03:27I blink.
03:28Is this supposed to be intimidating?
03:31Because honestly, I'm more scared of my rent.
03:34The corner of his mouth lifts again.
03:36Amused.
03:38Dangerously.
03:39Quietly amused.
03:41I can fix that, he says.
03:43I don't want you to fix anything.
03:46You asked for a rich man.
03:48As a joke?
03:49He removes his sunglasses, and that's when I finally see his eyes.
03:54Dark.
03:55Steady.
03:56Fathoms of control and calculation softened only by a flicker of something I can't read.
04:01When he looks at me, it's like he's measuring the distance between us in ways that have nothing to do with feet.
04:06Doesn't matter, Cassian murmurs.
04:09I choose what I respond to.
04:12I laugh too loudly, too nervously.
04:15Okay, well, I'm choosing to walk away.
04:18Have a rich day.
04:19Dawn.
04:19Whatever.
04:20Cassian, he corrects, and you're not walking away.
04:25I freeze again, for the second time in five minutes.
04:29Not ideal.
04:30Excuse me?
04:32He nods toward the grocery cart.
04:34Your little collection there?
04:36You bought that with your last $76.
04:39My stomach drops.
04:41How do you...
04:43Your landlord is threatening eviction.
04:45Your job cut your hours.
04:47And your ex contacted you this morning asking for money.
04:51Are you stalking me?
04:53Checking on you.
04:55His voice lowers.
04:56Warm but unyielding.
04:58There's a difference.
05:00No, no, there's really not.
05:03Cassian steps close enough that I smell sun, clean cotton, and something expensive I'll never identify.
05:10You're in trouble, he says.
05:12I'm offering a way out.
05:14I grit my teeth.
05:16Why me?
05:17His eyes lock on mine with unnerving precision.
05:21Because you looked straight at a camera and asked for something.
05:25Most people hide their wants.
05:27A pause.
05:28Deliberate.
05:29Not you.
05:31I was joking.
05:33Sometimes jokes reveal more truth than confessions.
05:37My heart drills against my ribs.
05:40I don't trust him.
05:41I don't trust myself around him.
05:43I don't trust that this isn't the start of a very ugly, very newsworthy tragedy.
05:48Yet I can't look away.
05:50His presence pulls at something I haven't felt in months.
05:54Possibility.
05:55Danger.
05:56Warmth.
05:56All braided together into a single, maddening pulse.
06:00A mother with two toddlers stares at us as she walks by.
06:04One of the kids points.
06:06Mommy.
06:07He looks like the guy on...
06:08Shh, sweetie.
06:09Don't look.
06:11Yep.
06:11Totally normal run-in.
06:13I drag in a breath.
06:15Cassian, whatever you think I asked for.
06:18You asked for a rich man.
06:20I did not mean a crime boss billionaire.
06:23He lifts an eyebrow.
06:24Do you prefer a different kind?
06:26I prefer none.
06:29Liar.
06:30Every muscle in my body sparks.
06:33I am not lying.
06:35You want safety.
06:36You want stability.
06:38You want someone who can help you breathe again.
06:41His voice doesn't raise.
06:42Doesn't soften.
06:44It just lands.
06:46I know because I've wanted the same.
06:49I stare at him.
06:51He looks away for the first time.
06:53Jaw tight like he said more than he planned.
06:55Like maybe vulnerability slipped through the cracks.
06:59Before I can respond, a silver sedan screeches into the parking lot and slams to a stop in front of us.
07:05Two men jump out.
07:06Tattoos.
07:07Sunburned arms.
07:09Cheap sunglasses.
07:10I recognize the symbol on their shirts.
07:13The Caltero family.
07:14Local rivals.
07:15Aggressive.
07:16Loud.
07:17And reportedly stupid.
07:19The taller one points at me.
07:21That's her.
07:22The Vero girl.
07:23I am absolutely not the Vero girl.
07:26I blurt.
07:27The shorter one grins.
07:29Boss wants to talk to her.
07:31Cassian's expression doesn't change.
07:33Not even a blink.
07:35He steps in front of me.
07:36Hands loose at his sides.
07:38Voice like polished steel.
07:40She's not going anywhere.
07:42The taller man scoffs.
07:44You don't own the whole city, Vero.
07:46Cassian smiles.
07:48Calm.
07:49Quiet.
07:50Lethal.
07:51No, he says.
07:53Just your daylight.
07:55They move first.
07:56Cassian moves faster.
07:58No guns.
07:59The men don't dare.
08:01It's broad daylight in a crowded parking lot.
08:04Everything is fists, elbows, brutal precision.
08:08Cassian takes them down like he's bored.
08:09Like he's done this enough times to choreograph it.
08:12When the second man hits the pavement, groaning, Cassian turns back to me, unrumpled, breathing
08:18steady.
08:20A moment of no return stands between us, pulsing like a heartbeat.
08:24You're coming with me, he says.
08:26I swallow hard.
08:29And if I say no?
08:31He looks at the dented cans in my cart, then at the sedan's shattered side mirror.
08:36You won't.
08:37He opens the SUV door.
08:39I don't know if I'm choosing safety or danger.
08:42I don't know if I'm letting him save me or trap me.
08:45But every instinct, every ragged breath, every ounce of survival in me whispers the
08:50same truth.
08:51Walking toward him feels like the only direction left.
08:55I climb in.
08:56The door shuts.
08:58Sunlight floods through the windows like a spotlight closing over Act 1.
09:02Cassian slides in beside me.
09:04This is where things change, he says.
09:07And for once, I believe him.
09:08The SUV glides out of the grocery store parking lot, sunlight bouncing off the hood like it's
09:13proud to belong to someone richer than gravity.
09:16Cassian drives with one hand on the wheel, the other resting on the console like he's
09:20listening to a melody only he can hear.
09:23I sit stiffly, holding my dignity in place like a badly balanced tower of Jenga bricks.
09:29My breathing is too loud, too human, too… not mafia-level calm.
09:34He doesn't look at me for the first few minutes, which would be a relief if it
09:38didn't feel like I'm being x-rayed by silence.
09:40Finally, he asks,
09:42You hurt anywhere?
09:43Like he's checking on a package he intends to insure for millions.
09:47I'm fine, I mutter.
09:48You're the one who went full action movie in a Ralph's parking lot.
09:52It was a Vons, he corrects, and I want to throw myself out the window.
09:57I turn toward him, flustered.
09:59Okay, whatever.
10:01Costco-adjacent violence isn't the point.
10:03Why were they after me?
10:04Cassian's jaw flexes, a careful shift of muscle revealing nothing but warning.
10:11The Calteros like to make statements.
10:13You going viral puts you in a spotlight they thought they could exploit.
10:17I didn't ask for a spotlight, I say.
10:20I didn't ask for… any of this.
10:23You asked for a rich man.
10:26He drops the line casually, like he's reciting a weather report.
10:30But his gaze flicks toward me for half a second.
10:33It feels like a current charging through the car, invisible and lethal.
10:37I swear, I whisper.
10:40I'm never joking online again.
10:42He parks the SUV in front of a high-rise I've only ever seen on Zillow at three in the morning
10:46when insomnia and bad decisions collaborate.
10:49Glass walls, terraces larger than my entire apartment,
10:52and a doorman who looks like he used to guard the louvre.
10:55Get out, Cassian says softly, like it's a suggestion but also absolutely not.
11:01My legs wobble but obey.
11:03Inside, everything gleams.
11:05Marble floors, gold railings,
11:08sunlight pouring in through windows that make the city look like a painting.
11:11I feel wildly out of place, like a loose thread in the world's most expensive sweater.
11:17Cassian walks with easy authority,
11:19the kind that bends space around him without effort.
11:22People step aside with tiny nods,
11:25as if daylight itself parts for him.
11:27The private elevator recognizes him before he speaks.
11:31Doors gliding open like they're greeting royalty.
11:34I step inside,
11:35gripping my tote bag full of clearance-canned goods like emotional support beans.
11:40Cassian presses the top floor,
11:42then leans against the wall,
11:43watching me with unnerving calm.
11:46You're safe now, he says.
11:48That sounds like something a kidnapper would say.
11:51His lips twitch,
11:53which I'm beginning to recognize as his version of a full belly laugh.
11:57If I wanted to kidnap you, he says,
12:00you wouldn't have gotten your cart of groceries.
12:03Wow, so thoughtful.
12:06Five-star abduction experience.
12:08The elevator opens to a penthouse bathed in midday sunlight,
12:12so bright it feels like stepping into a dream someone wealthy engineered.
12:16Floor-to-ceiling windows show the whole city spread out in crisp, proud detail.
12:20The living room looks like a museum exhibit titled Man Who Has Too Much Money.
12:24I hover near the entry, unsure where a broke girl is legally allowed to stand.
12:29Cassian drapes his suit jacket over a chair,
12:32revealing his rolled sleeves,
12:33veined forearms,
12:34and general aura of expensive chaos.
12:36Sit, he says, nodding at the couch.
12:41I sit on the edge like it's going to charge me rent.
12:44He takes the opposite end,
12:46sitting with the loose confidence of someone who commands oceans.
12:49Tell me everything, he says.
12:52Your job?
12:53Your landlord?
12:54Your ex?
12:55Wow, okay.
12:56We're doing my entire tragic resume already?
12:59Yes.
13:01There's no impatience,
13:02just a steady expectation that I will talk.
13:04I exhale, rubbing my forehead.
13:07I work at a copy shop that keeps cutting hours
13:09because apparently people print less when they can just email.
13:13Cassian nods,
13:14like he's mentally buying out the entire industry so I never struggle again.
13:18My landlord is raising rent again even though the ceiling leaks
13:21like it's auditioning for a sad indie film.
13:23And your ex?
13:25He asks quietly.
13:27I groan.
13:28He's useless.
13:29He gambled his way into debt and thinks I'm his personal GoFundMe.
13:32Cassian's eyes sharpen,
13:36a quiet storm forming beneath the sunlight.
13:39He contacted you today asking for money.
13:42Yeah, I say.
13:43He needs to pay some guy back.
13:45The same guy who threatened to take his kneecaps last year.
13:49Cassian leans forward,
13:50resting his elbows on his knees,
13:52gaze fixed on me like I'm a puzzle he intends to finish.
13:56You're connected to trouble because he is.
13:58I don't want to be connected to him at all.
14:01You won't be,
14:03he says with unshakable certainty.
14:06My pulse trips.
14:07You can't just say stuff like that.
14:10It isn't stuff.
14:11It's a promise.
14:13Cassian, you barely know me.
14:15His gaze holds mine.
14:17I know enough.
14:18I stand abruptly,
14:20pacing toward the windows to clear my head.
14:23Sunlight washes over me,
14:25warm and relentless,
14:26but my thoughts feel scrambled.
14:29He follows,
14:29stopping a few feet away,
14:31his presence a gravity field.
14:33You're scared,
14:34he says.
14:35Of course I'm scared.
14:37I turn,
14:38hands flying up.
14:39You're...
14:40you.
14:40And I'm...
14:41me.
14:42That isn't an answer.
14:44You are a mafia don
14:46with a fan club of terrified businessmen.
14:48And you are a woman
14:50who doesn't back down,
14:51he says quietly.
14:53My breath stutters
14:53because he says it like
14:54it's a fact he respects,
14:56not a flaw.
14:57I look down,
14:58trying to gather myself.
14:59I don't know why you're doing this.
15:02Because you needed someone,
15:04he says,
15:04and I happened to see it.
15:06I was joking.
15:08That doesn't matter.
15:09His voice goes soft,
15:11almost cautious.
15:11I don't ignore things
15:13that pull at me.
15:15Heat curls in my chest,
15:16equal parts frustration
15:17and something dangerously
15:18like warmth.
15:20Before I can respond,
15:21the elevator dings again,
15:23sharp,
15:23urgent,
15:24unwelcome.
15:26Cassian's expression
15:27turns glacial in one blink.
15:29Stay behind me.
15:31Two men in suits step out,
15:33both carrying stacks
15:34of paperwork and stress.
15:36Sir,
15:37we have a situation,
15:38one says.
15:39The Calteros moved
15:40on our Glendale storage facility,
15:42broad daylight.
15:44Cassian's jaw tightens.
15:46Casualties?
15:47None,
15:48but it's a message.
15:50Cassian nods once,
15:51controlled,
15:52deadly calm.
15:53Then he looks at me.
15:55You're staying here.
15:56Don't open the door.
15:56Don't take calls
15:57from unknown numbers.
15:59My frustration flares.
16:01I'm not a child.
16:03Didn't say you were.
16:05He steps closer,
16:06lowering his voice.
16:07But you are in the middle
16:08of something because of me,
16:10and I'll handle it.
16:11You're always in the middle
16:12of something,
16:13I say.
16:14That's why I'm good at it.
16:16He reaches for his jacket.
16:18Cassian.
16:19I say his name
16:20without thinking,
16:21and it stops him cold.
16:23He turns,
16:24eyes locking onto mine
16:25with an intensity
16:26that pierces
16:27straight through my ribs.
16:28His voice drops.
16:30Yes, Riley?
16:32Just...
16:32come back.
16:34A softness flickers
16:35across his features,
16:36brief and raw.
16:38I intend to.
16:39He brushes past me,
16:40a breath of heat
16:41and quiet command.
16:43As he heads
16:43toward the elevator,
16:44I can't help it.
16:45I step forward.
16:47Wait.
16:48He pauses again,
16:49glancing over his shoulder.
16:51The sunlight hits him
16:52just right,
16:53turning him into a man
16:54sculpted from daybreak
16:55and danger.
16:56I swallow.
16:58Why does it feel like
16:59you're putting me
17:00under witness protection
17:01without the witness part?
17:02He exhales a small laugh,
17:04almost private.
17:06Because I don't want
17:07anything happening to you.
17:09The elevator doors open.
17:11And what if I don't want
17:12anything happening to you?
17:14I ask without thinking.
17:15The words freeze
17:17both of us
17:17for a heartbeat.
17:19Cassian turns fully,
17:20studying me
17:21like I've just altered
17:22the structure of the world.
17:24His voice dips
17:24to something warm
17:25and unsettling.
17:27Then I'll come back faster.
17:29He steps inside,
17:31doors sliding shut
17:32with a soft hum
17:32that feels too final.
17:34Silence fills the penthouse,
17:36vast and echoing,
17:38like the whole city
17:38is holding its breath.
17:40I sink onto the couch,
17:42sunlight drowning me
17:43while my heart
17:44sprints unevenly.
17:45I don't know what we are.
17:47Strangers tied by a joke
17:48gone nuclear.
17:50Opposites orbiting
17:51the same point of chaos.
17:53A broke girl and a man
17:54who could buy daylight
17:54if he felt like it.
17:56But the space he left behind
17:57feels unbearably warm.
18:00Minutes stretch.
18:00My phone buzzes non-stop.
18:03Tweets, comments,
18:04messages from people
18:05I've never met.
18:06All speculating about me
18:08and the mafia Don
18:09who casually saved me
18:10in a parking lot.
18:11My life was a quiet mess
18:13two days ago.
18:15Now it's a trending topic.
18:17The elevator dings again
18:18and I jolt upright,
18:20pulse ricocheting.
18:22But it's just a delivery guy
18:23bringing groceries
18:24Cassian apparently
18:25ordered for me.
18:26I stare at the bags.
18:28Fresh fruit,
18:29artisan bread,
18:30snacks I used to save
18:31for holidays.
18:32It feels like being seen
18:33in a way I didn't expect.
18:36When he leaves,
18:37I stand alone in the sunlight,
18:39feeling the shift in the air.
18:41Cassian is somewhere
18:42fighting daylight battles
18:43with men who want
18:44to tear down his empire.
18:46And I'm here,
18:47in the safest place
18:48I've ever been,
18:49because he put me here,
18:50because he chose to.
18:51I whisper to myself,
18:54this is bad.
18:56This is really,
18:57really bad.
18:58But the warmth in my chest
19:00says something
19:01entirely different,
19:02something reckless,
19:04something hopeful.
19:05The elevator dings again
19:07and this time,
19:09I know everything
19:10is about to change.
19:11The elevator doors
19:12slide open
19:13and sunlight spills
19:15across the penthouse floor
19:16like it's announcing royalty.
19:18Cassian steps out,
19:20jacket gone,
19:21shirt sleeves rolled,
19:22hair slightly out of place
19:23in a way that makes
19:24my lungs fold.
19:26His presence fills the room
19:27before his footsteps do,
19:29carrying intensity
19:30and exhaustion
19:31and something that feels
19:32like relief.
19:33I'm standing beside
19:34the kitchen island,
19:35gripping a grocery bag
19:36like it's emotional armor.
19:39You're back,
19:40I say,
19:41and my voice betrays me,
19:42cracking with everything
19:43I didn't let myself feel
19:44while he was gone.
19:46Cassian studies me,
19:48eyes moving over my face
19:49with a precision
19:50that feels like a touch.
19:52Of course I'm back.
19:54He says it like the idea
19:55of not coming back
19:56is absurd.
19:57I set the grocery bag down
19:59because my hands are shaking
20:00just enough to be humiliating.
20:02You okay?
20:04I ask.
20:05He nods once,
20:06controlled,
20:07measured.
20:09Handled,
20:09he says,
20:10but the word is heavy enough
20:12to bruise marble.
20:13What does handled mean?
20:15That the Calteros
20:16won't be bothering you again.
20:19That wasn't my question.
20:21Cassian pauses,
20:22jaw tightening
20:23like he's debating
20:23how honest to be.
20:25They ambushed my facility,
20:27he says softly.
20:29In daylight,
20:30sloppy,
20:31desperate.
20:32He moves closer,
20:34footsteps slow,
20:35almost cautious.
20:37But their message
20:38wasn't for my men,
20:39it was for me.
20:41I swallow.
20:43About me.
20:44About claiming you.
20:47The words hit the air
20:48like a spark.
20:49My heart stumbles,
20:51the room tilts,
20:52and I grab the counter
20:53because my balance
20:54suddenly hates me.
20:55I'm not something to claim,
20:57I whisper.
20:59Cassian's eyes lift,
21:01sharp but warm,
21:02steady but fierce.
21:04I know,
21:05he says.
21:06That's why I shut it down.
21:08He takes another step
21:09toward me,
21:10closing the distance
21:11until the space
21:11between us thins
21:12like breath on glass.
21:14You're not theirs.
21:16You're not mine.
21:17You're
21:17you.
21:20My chest tightens
21:21at the way he says it.
21:23Not possessive.
21:24Not gentle.
21:25Just true.
21:27Then why does it feel
21:28like everything keeps
21:29pulling me deeper
21:29into your world?
21:31He exhales,
21:33slow and rough,
21:34like the truth
21:35drags on the way out.
21:37Because I didn't walk away
21:39when I should have.
21:41I laugh,
21:42shaky and very not cool.
21:44So this is all your fault?
21:47A small smile
21:48touches his mouth,
21:49real enough
21:50to feel like sunlight.
21:52Yes.
21:53He moves closer
21:55until we share
21:55the same breath.
21:57I don't step back.
21:58He doesn't step forward.
22:00We hang in a moment
22:01that feels stitched
22:02with tension
22:03and decision
22:03and everything
22:04we've been pretending
22:05not to feel.
22:07Then he speaks,
22:08low,
22:09unguarded.
22:10I could have ignored
22:11your video,
22:12he says.
22:13I could have dismissed it
22:14like I do everything else
22:15that isn't strategic
22:16or profitable.
22:17His voice drops,
22:19warm and honest,
22:20in a way that terrifies me.
22:22But I saw you,
22:23and for the first time
22:24in years,
22:25I wanted something
22:26for no reason.
22:27He shakes his head.
22:29Wanting is dangerous
22:30for a man like me.
22:32My pulse speeds,
22:33tripping fast
22:34and electric.
22:36So what do you want now?
22:38You.
22:39The word lands between us,
22:41raw and deliberate.
22:43The room goes
22:44impossibly quiet.
22:46I feel the confession
22:47like heat on my skin,
22:49like the city outside
22:50has paused
22:50out of respect.
22:52I don't know
22:53how to breathe
22:53when someone like him
22:54says something like that.
22:55I look away
22:57because eye contact
22:58feels too much.
22:59I don't know
23:00if I can handle
23:01your world,
23:02I say softly.
23:03I'm not asking you to.
23:06That pulls my gaze
23:07back to him.
23:09He's closer now,
23:10sunlight catching
23:10in the dark of his eyes.
23:12I'm asking you
23:13to let me handle it
23:14so you don't have to.
23:16His voice is steady,
23:18gentle in its own
23:18controlled way.
23:20I'll deal with
23:21the Calteros,
23:22your ex,
23:23your landlord,
23:24your fear.
23:26You can't fix my fear,
23:28I whisper.
23:30Maybe not,
23:31he admits.
23:32But I can make sure
23:33you don't face it alone.
23:35He says it like a vow,
23:37not a promise.
23:39And something inside me
23:40folds, rearranges,
23:42opens.
23:43Cassian.
23:45Before I can finish,
23:46his phone buzzes.
23:48He glances at it,
23:49annoyance flickering
23:50across his face.
23:52It's my men,
23:53he says.
23:54They need confirmation.
23:56He rejects the call
23:57without hesitating.
23:59I raise an eyebrow.
24:01You're ignoring
24:02your empire for me?
24:04He smirks,
24:04just slightly.
24:06They can wait.
24:07He steps closer
24:08until we're a breath apart.
24:10You can't.
24:11My heart does a stupid,
24:13dramatic somersault.
24:15Okay,
24:15that line should be illegal.
24:17His voice lowers
24:18to a husky murmur.
24:20Then arrest me.
24:21Don't tempt me,
24:22I mutter.
24:24The tension is molten
24:25and sweet
24:26and terrifying.
24:28Everything in me
24:28wants to lean forward.
24:30Everything in me
24:31wants to run away.
24:33So naturally,
24:34I do neither.
24:36Instead,
24:36I ask,
24:37what happens now?
24:40Cassian studies me
24:40for a long,
24:41quiet moment.
24:43You tell me
24:44whether you want
24:44to stay or leave.
24:46My breath stops.
24:47If you walk out
24:49that door,
24:50he says softly,
24:51I'll let you go.
24:52I won't follow.
24:54I won't interfere
24:54in your life again.
24:56The words slice clean
24:58because they're true.
25:00And if I stay?
25:02His jaw tightens.
25:04If you stay,
25:05then I choose you.
25:07Not power.
25:09Not territory.
25:10Not the war
25:11my family has been
25:12fighting for decades.
25:14He swallows hard,
25:15eyes locked on mine.
25:18You.
25:19The conviction
25:20rattles through me.
25:21Sunlight pours
25:22through the windows,
25:23warm on my skin,
25:24unforgiving in its clarity.
25:26Every doubt,
25:27every fear
25:28sits exposed
25:28under the bright sky.
25:30He's offering
25:31something real,
25:32dangerous,
25:33life-altering,
25:34but real.
25:35I take a step
25:36toward him.
25:37His breath catches
25:38so subtle
25:39I almost miss it.
25:40I don't want the money,
25:42I whisper.
25:43I know.
25:45I don't want a savior.
25:46I know that too.
25:48I don't want to lose myself
25:50in your world.
25:51You won't,
25:53he murmurs.
25:54My voice drops.
25:55So what do you want from me?
25:58Cassian exhales,
25:59slow and careful,
26:01like he's releasing
26:01something heavy.
26:03I want someone who sees me
26:05without fear.
26:06He looks down.
26:08You're the first person
26:09who has in a very long time.
26:11My heart hits
26:12a soft, painful ache.
26:15Cassian,
26:16look at me.
26:18He lifts his chin,
26:19meeting my eyes
26:20with unguarded intensity.
26:22I step closer,
26:24close enough
26:24to feel the heat
26:25between us.
26:26I'm not leaving,
26:27I say.
26:29His breath shudders.
26:31You're sure?
26:33Yes.
26:34The word hangs between us,
26:36sealed by sunlight
26:37and certainty.
26:38Cassian closes
26:40the remaining distance,
26:41stopping just short
26:42of touching.
26:43I need to hear it again.
26:45I'm staying.
26:47A slow,
26:48quiet exhale
26:49escapes him,
26:50like a man uncoiling
26:51after years of tightness.
26:54His forehead leans
26:55gently against mine,
26:56a soft,
26:57steady connection
26:58that feels like a promise
26:59without ceremony.
27:01You undo me,
27:02he whispers.
27:04And you scare me,
27:05I whisper back.
27:07Good.
27:08He murmurs.
27:09Means we're even.
27:11A laugh breaks out of me,
27:13warm and breathless.
27:15His fingers brush my jaw,
27:16light as a question.
27:18I nod.
27:19He kisses me,
27:20slow,
27:21deliberate,
27:22devastating in its tenderness.
27:24It's not a claim,
27:25not a warning,
27:27just a man choosing softness
27:28in broad daylight.
27:30When he pulls back,
27:31his voice wraps around me
27:32like sunlight.
27:33I'm still a dangerous man,
27:36Riley.
27:37And I'm still a broke girl
27:38with clearance cans.
27:40We'll fix that,
27:42he says lightly.
27:43I said I didn't want money.
27:46I didn't say I was giving you any,
27:48he replies.
27:49I said we'll fix the cans.
27:51I laugh again,
27:53leaning into him.
27:54He smiles,
27:55small,
27:56but genuine.
27:57The elevator dings,
27:59but neither of us look.
28:00Daylight fills the penthouse,
28:02bright and shameless.
28:04Cassian wraps an arm around me,
28:06grounding,
28:06steady,
28:07real.
28:08Come on,
28:09he says.
28:10Time to build something new.
28:12Us?
28:13I ask.
28:14He nods.
28:15Us,
28:16he says,
28:17with the quiet certainty
28:18of a man choosing love
28:20over legacy.
28:21And in the full blaze
28:23of Los Angeles daylight,
28:24I choose him right back.
28:26If Cassian's daylight danger
28:28and slow burn intensity
28:29got you hooked,
28:31make sure you hit, like,
28:32drop a comment
28:33telling me your favorite moment
28:34and share this with someone
28:35who loves a good mafia romance.
28:38And don't forget
28:38to subscribe,
28:39follow so you never miss
28:40the next chapter.
28:41The plot twists,
28:42the sparks,
28:43the chaos,
28:43all of it.
28:44Your support keeps the story going.
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