•The club•
Friday nights were always louder.
The city didn't sleep—it roared.
Neon lights painted the streets in violent shades of red and blue while music spilled out of crowded clubs, mixing with laughter, engines, and distant sirens.
From inside a black car parked across the street, Adrian Voss watched the entrance of Vortex Club.
His club.
Technically, it belonged to one of his businesses on paper, but everyone in the city who mattered knew the truth.
Nothing in this district moved without Adrian knowing.
Marcus leaned against the driver's door, arms folded, scanning the street with the relaxed alertness of a man who had spent years surviving dangerous situations.
Second in command.
Right hand.
And the only person who could speak to Adrian without fear.
"You've been sitting in that car for twenty minutes," Marcus said finally.
Adrian didn't respond.
Marcus followed his gaze toward the entrance.
A group of girls were laughing as they approached the club doors.
One of them wore a black dress.
Her hair fell over her shoulders in loose waves.
Marcus groaned
"You've got to be kidding me."
Lila Hart.
Adrian's eyes followed her every movement as she laughed at something one of her friends said.
She looked different tonight.
Less careful.
Less quiet.
Her smile was brighter.
Her guard was down.
Marcus rubbed his face.
"Adrian…"
No response.
Marcus sighed.
"You're a mafia boss running half the underground networks in this city. We have shipments to handle tonight."
Silence.
"Deals with people who would happily shoot us if they got the chance."
Still silence.
Marcus finally looked directly at him.
"And instead you're sitting here watching a girl go clubbing with her friends."
Adrian's voice came calm and low.
"She shouldn't be here."
Marcus scoffed.
"It's a nightclub, not a battlefield."
Adrian finally stepped out of the car.
The cold night air didn't seem to touch him.
His gaze never left Lila.
"Places like this attract predators," he said quietly.
Marcus muttered under his breath.
"So do you."
Adrian walked toward the club entrance.
The guards immediately straightened when they saw him.
"Boss."
Adrian gave a small nod and entered.
Inside, the music hit like a wave.
Heavy bass.
Flashing lights.
Bodies moving together on the crowded dance floor.
From the upper VIP balcony, Adrian had a perfect view of the entire room.
Including her.
Lila stood near the bar with two friends.
Marcus joined him at the railing.
"Let me guess," Marcus said. "We're staying up here so you can stare dramatically into the distance."
Adrian ignored him.
Down below, one of Lila's friends said something that made her laugh.
The sound didn't reach him through the music, but he could see it.
Her head tilting slightly.
Her eyes closing for a moment.
Marcus watched Adrian's expression carefully.
"Adrian," he said quietly.
No answer.
Marcus leaned closer.
"This isn't curiosity anymore and stop fucking staring at her ."
Adrian's jaw tightened.
Below them, a man approached the girls.
Tall.
Confident.
Too close.
Marcus saw the shift in Adrian immediately.
The subtle tension in his shoulders.
"Oh no this is going to be funnn," Marcus muttered while smirking.
Adrian was already moving.
Marcus grabbed his arm.
"Adrian."
Adrian looked at him.
Marcus sighed.
"You're the most feared man in this city," Marcus said quietly. "You can't go down there and start fights over a girl who doesn't even know you."
Adrian's voice was dangerously calm.
"He's touching her and yes she knows me not that much though."he said smirking
Marcus looked down again.
The man had leaned closer to Lila, saying something near her ear so she could hear him over the music.
Lila smiled politely.
Marcus groaned.
"Adrian—"
Too late.
Adrian had already disappeared into the crowd.
Marcus rubbed his temples.
"This is going to be a disaster."
Down on the dance floor, Lila had just taken a sip of her drink when someone stepped in front of her.
She looked up.
And froze.
It was him.
The strange man who she had helped the other night.
The one who appeared at the alley the day she was coming back from school.
His dark eyes locked onto hers.
For a moment, the noise of the club seemed to fade.
"You," she said.
Adrian studied her carefully.
Up close.
Real.
"Hello, Lila."
Her brows pulled together.
"You know my name?"
Adrian didn't answer.
Instead, he glanced at the man standing beside her.
The man suddenly looked uncomfortable.
"Is there a problem?" the stranger asked.
Adrian's gaze returned to him.
Cold.
Sharp.
Silent.
The man shifted slightly.
"No problem," he muttered quickly before backing away.
Lila blinked.
"Okay… that was weird."
Marcus appeared behind Adrian, looking tired already.
"Hi," Marcus said to Lila with a friendly smile.
"Sorry about him. He's… socially complicated."
Lila laughed slightly.
"I noticed."
Adrian ignored Marcus completely.
His attention stayed on her.
"You shouldn't drink that," he said.
She looked down at her glass.
"Why?"
"It's your third one."
Her eyes widened slightly.
"How do you know that?"
Adrian didn't answer.
Marcus quickly stepped in.
"Lucky guess," he said.
Lila looked between them suspiciously.
"You two are strange."
Marcus grinned.
"You have no idea."
The music shifted to a slower beat.
People around them moved closer together on the dance floor.
Adrian extended his hand.
"Dance with me."
Lila stared at him.
"That wasn't a question."
"No."
Marcus whispered behind him, "You're unbelievable."
Lila hesitated.
Every instinct told her this man was dangerous but yet she still couldn't bring her self to say no.
There was something intense about him.
Something controlled.
But there was also something strangely magnetic.
Before she could overthink it…
She placed her hand in his.
Adrian's fingers closed around hers.
Warm.
Firm.
Possessive.
For three months he had watched her from the shadows.
Memorized her routines.
All just because she once saved him .
And now he's OBSESSED and can't get over her.
And Adrian realized something in that moment.
Watching her had never been enough.
He had always known that.
He had just been patient.
Very patient.
Marcus watched them disappear into the moving crowd.
He sighed deeply.
"Yeah," he muttered to himself.
"His obsession is about to get a lot worse." 🖤