JoseMary

She was the price of betrayal.she was served the punishment she didn’t see coming.

When Aria Monroe's father and step mom sealed a deal with the moretti family , she’s forced to replace her step-sister and to enter into an arranged marriage with Lucien Moretti, the ruthless heir,the most feared mafia family in New York. Cold. Possessive. Deadly. He makes no promises of love—only ownership.

When forced by her family, Aria's freedom was signed away. But marrying Lucien means stepping into a world of velvet lies and blood-stained truths, where trust is a luxury and affection and weapon.

She’s fire—beautiful, defiant, and untamed.
He’s ice—unforgiving, controlling, and consumed by vengeance.
Together, they burn.
 
Lucien doesn’t want love — he wants control.
Aria doesn’t want a husband — she wants freedom.
But the longer they’re bound together, the deeper the obsession grows.

Secrets. Betrayal. Passion.
In a world of blood and loyalty, Aria must decide:
Is she a pawn in a deadly game… or the queen about to take the king?

And as secrets unravel and enemies close in, passion becomes war, and their bond teeters between destruction and desire.
In a world ruled by power and violence, can love ever be more than a blood price?

His Bride,His Blood Price

Chapter 16 — The Spaces Between Us

The ride home was too quiet.She sat beside him in the back of the sleek black car, staring out the window as the road blurred past in streaks of gold and black,her fingers were curled neatly in her lap and her jaw tense.Lucien didn't say a word, he didn't have to.She could still feel his hand from earlier pressed firm to the small of her back as he stared down Sofia like he'd tear her throat out and it shouldn't have mattered but it did because Aria hated the way Sofia looked at him —like she once owned him and she hated the way Lucien knew how jealous it made her feel… and didn't comment,he didn't need to but he saw everything and Aria was starting to realize she didn't hate that part.She was starting to realize she felt something sharp, twisting, soft and terrifying for a man she was never meant to want.

She hadn't looked at him once since they left the gala but he felt her silence.It was heavy,defensive and loud.She wasn't hiding it well tonight ,not like usual. Her shoulders were a little too still and her mouth a little too tight and yet she didn't say a word about Sofia.

She didn't ask questions or accuse because Aria didn't want to show that she cared but Lucien knew.

He saw the flicker in her eyes when Sofia called him.She didn't know it yet, but she was already losing the war,the one she was fighting with herself and he wasn't going to let her win it.

Later that night,the moonlight spilled through the tall hallway windows as they walked toward their wing,no guards or interruptions,just Lucien's slow steps in front of her and the thick, unspoken tension stretching between them like glass.

At her door, she stopped but he didn't.He walked three more paces before realizing she wasn't following,turning slowly, he met her eyes.She looked torn unsure whether to walk away or speak and then, barely above a whisper, she said, "Did you love her?"

Lucien blinked once but didn't look away."I thought I did."he said not sure of what to tell her.

Aria nodded once,just once and then turned to open her door."Wait."His voice stopped her hand on the knob,when she looked back, his face was unreadable. But his voice was quieter now."I didn't bring you to that gala to make her jealous, Aria."She swallowed. "Then why did you?"He took a step closer and then another until they were only inches apart.

"I brought you because I knew they'd look at you. And I wanted them to see exactly what they could never touch."She blinked up at him, heart pounding."That sounds possessive."she said.He tilted his head slightly."It is."

Then, her voice,soft and shaken."I don't know how to be wanted like that."Lucien's expression shifted,not softer but deeper.He reached out, brushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

"You should learn," he murmured."Why?"she asked."Because you're being wanted right now and it's not going to stop."

She didn't move,she didn't breathe.Her heart was doing something wild in her chest, beating against her ribs like it had something to confess.She wanted to say it ,whatever it was but the words caught in her throat.Instead, she whispered:"I'm sorry this wasn't supposed to happen."Lucien's hand dropped to his side."I know."and then, just like that, he stepped back."I'll see you in the morning."He turned and walked to his own door,he didn't look back and Aria stood there, hand still on the knob, realizing the truth:She was falling for him and the scariest part?

His Bride, His Blood Price