Amara Reyes' trauma resurfaced when she met Sebastian Cole, a mafia who had saved her from an attack at Lady Lilie's art exhibition. During the attack, the exhibition lights went out, and someone pulled her from the darkness. Amara panicked, thinking she was being kidnapped again, but it turned out to be Cole who had saved her. Amara thanked him but left immediately because she felt uncomfortable being near Cole. However, when Cole held her back and asked, "Where have you been?" Amara ran away. She found Cole strange for suddenly asking such a question, unaware that Cole had finally found his wife who had been missing for almost three months since that fateful night.
Chapter 1 Blue Deep Ocean's Eyes
New York. March, 2025.
Amara Reyes stood in the middle of the dim gallery, surrounded by various abstract paintings by one of the famous painters from Paris, known as Lady Lilie. The dim room created a spooky and uncomfortable atmosphere from every painting displayed on the walls. Amara couldn't stay here for long. She had to leave; dim and silent rooms like this were not her favorite.
"Cole! You came after all. Thank you for stopping by-"
Amara shifted her gaze to the double doors not far from where she stood. A tall man with mesmerizing blonde hair stood tall with a captivating small smile. Amara furrowed her brows, turning her face away just as the man looked at her from afar.
"Amara?"
Amara froze for a moment when her name was called, and oddly, when she heard her name being called like that, the man's deep voice sounded familiar to her ears. But still, Amara ignored it.
Probably just another playboy who likes to flaunt his charm and invite women to sleep with him. It was not unusual for Amara to experience such incidents. But for Amara, she would never do that. To her, men were like dirt. Worthless.
"I don't know you, so stop before you ruin everything," Amara said as she heard the man's footsteps approaching. From behind, the man stopped.
The man didn't say anything for a few seconds. His figure standing behind Amara made her uncomfortable. She turned around with her arms crossed, looking up at the man who was now staring at her without expression.
"Stay away from me. Don't you know who I am?"
Amara was about to walk away, but the man immediately grabbed her wrist and forced her to stand in her previous position. Amara gasped slightly, almost ready to assume a fighting stance she often practiced if a suspicious person touched her. But the movement was halted when those dark blue eyes captured Amara's gaze in a mesmerizing daze.
Framed by thick eyebrows, a sharp nose, and a perfectly sculpted jaw, his blonde hair against his fair skin and broad shoulders practically stopped Amara from showering the man with beautiful descriptions.
"Look at me, Amara."
The man lifted Amara's chin until she was looking up, and Amara froze.
A strange jolt struck her heart, which suddenly beat faster. She brushed off the man's grip and was about to speak when suddenly the exhibition room went dark. The faint hum of the power outage made the room echo softly.
Amara's hands instinctively gripped the man's arm, and she almost jumped into his arms as a wave of panic washed over her.
"What happened?" Amara's voice echoed loudly in the sudden silence. The gallery room suddenly turned pitch black, and Amara felt dizzy on her own feet. She absolutely hated the darkness. The urge to flee from this place surged beneath her feet.
"Sorry, miss. We're checking-"
The sound of a gunshot rang out sharply the next second. Amara couldn't process anything because her body was quickly pulled-almost carried by the man to the corner of the room. The sound of many footsteps stormed the front area, followed by the panicked screams of the remaining people in the gallery.
Things changed that fast. Shrouded in darkness, Amara felt herself drowning in panic, hearing nothing but the sound of the gun...
"Come out, you bastard! I won't spare scum like you. Especially your father. Amara..."
Amara jolted. She felt the blood flowing under her skin suddenly freeze. Her heart pounded hard; she covered her ears tightly because of the gunfire, but she clearly heard the stranger's voice echoing around the blinding gallery.
"Amara, you can't go anywhere now..."
Who are they? Do they have something to do with Dad?
Amara felt the man's hand that had been holding her from behind release. She didn't know where to hide, but Amara knew they couldn't be seen. A flashlight beam shone from the middle of the gallery. The man pulled Amara's shoulder to press against the wall, and Amara's eyes widened in shock.
Amara's and the man's faces were so close in the narrow space. She could dive into those ocean-deep blue eyes and get lost again in the faint flashlight beam shining from the middle of the gallery.
"Don't come out until they leave."
Amara frowned. "What are you going to do?"
Instead of answering, the man stroked Amara's cheek in a confusingly familiar touch. Amara knew this man was a stranger, but why did it feel like she had met him long ago?
"Please listen to me now, okay? You mustn't die."
Just as he said that, the man stood up and swiftly pulled out a handgun tucked behind his black jacket and stepped out. Two sharp, quick gunshots followed, and someone fell to the floor.
Amara covered her ears from the deafening sound. Gunfire exchanged, hand-to-hand combat ensued, Amara didn't know what was happening, but she had to get out of there.
"You mustn't die." The man's words etched in her mind. Amara felt her eyes burn and suddenly remembered her father's words, "You must live happily, dear. That's why you need to marry someone who truly makes you fall in love. Because love changes everything."
Amara flinched when the gunshots sounded faster and twice-closer.
"Oh, Sebastian Cole? Are you really Cole, the son of Dominic Julian, the troublesome Western Raven and enemy of all mafia? Ah, interesting. Didn't your father just die recently? Moreover, your father was killed by your own wife who also died in an accident! That sad news makes me happy every day. But... look at you now!" The man laughed loudly throughout the room, forcing Amara to peek out. The flashlight beam faintly illuminated the room.
The blue-eyed man stood slightly hunched, blood flowing from his arm that didn't hold the gun. Amara's eyes widened in panic. Was he shot?
"You better shut your mouth now because your voice is unbearable." Before Amara realized it, the man named Sebastian Cole had quickly dodged the pointed gun and leaped, locking the man's neck with his elbow.
"Sorry, but your happiness ends here."
Bang!
The man fell limply to the floor before he could speak, and Cole let his body lie pathetically. Blood streamed from his head, and his eyes widened in horror.
Unconsciously, Amara's body trembled, not from fear of seeing a dead person, but from anger. She looked up, staring at Cole-the blue-eyed man who was now looking at her from afar. Before the gun could shift to her head, Amara got up, slightly staggering, but quickly turned and ran through the back door not far from where she stood.
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