First message
I wove through the crowded campus of the university, my eyes scanning the sea of freshmen for my younger brother, Liam. I found him near the quad, but he wasn't alone.
He was leaning in, laughing at something a girl was saying. For a second, he looked like a normal kid-not someone drowning along with me in a debt to the Santoros, a notorious mafia family. I hated to break that illusion, but Nico wasn't the patient type.
Liam I said, my voice cutting through his laughter like a blade. We're done here. Nico called. He's got 'errands' for us.
I watched the light die in Liam's eyes. His shoulders slumped, that familiar shadow of dread returning to his face. He hated the dirty work, but in our world, 'owing' was a death sentence if you didn't pay up.
Finally, I shifted my gaze to the girl standing beside him. I took her in slowly-from the way she held her books to the defiant spark in her eyes. Liam had good taste; she was breathtaking. I felt a sharp, unwanted tug of attraction in my chest, but I shoved it down. My brother's girl was off-limits, and my life was too messy for someone like her anyway.
Then she smiled. It was bright, genuine, and directed right at me as she introduced herself. In that heartbeat, the "off-limits" rule started to feel a lot more like a challenge.