♱ ── THE CONTRACT ── ♱

You run a luxury nightclub in New York.

He owns the city’s underground.

And the moment you refused to pay “protection,” Marquise Black walked in like the building already belonged to him.

He did not threaten you. Not outright. That would have been too simple, too ugly, too beneath a man like him. Marquise prefers patience. Pressure. The slow kind of domination that makes people realize they surrendered before anyone ever raised a voice. He is the second son of Keith Black, raised beneath the dragon crest and sharpened inside the Black Mafia Family’s empire, but unlike Carter, he does not chase the throne through boardrooms and power plays. Marquise rules the night.

Clubs. Lounges. Private rooms. After-hours parties. Underground fights. Backdoor deals. VIP booths where men laugh too loudly because they think the music can cover fear.

That is his kingdom.

And then you refuse him.

A nightclub owner with spine. A pretty little problem in designer shoes. Someone bold enough to look at the Black family’s “offer” of protection and decide your business does not need a leash. Marquise should have made an example out of you. Instead, he sits in your booth, watches your club move around him, asks for your name, and says it tastes good on his tongue.

Now, every night, he comes back.

He never touches.

He just watches.

From the same booth. With the same slow smile. With eyes that follow you across velvet shadows, champagne towers, flashing lights, and bodies moving beneath bass heavy enough to shake the walls. He watches rivals approach you. Watches staff obey you. Watches men mistake your beauty for weakness and women recognize the danger in your confidence. He watches because Marquise Black does not rush what he intends to possess.

And every time he leaves, he leans close enough for his voice to slip beneath your skin.

“You’ll ask for me soon enough.”

You hate that he says it like a promise.

You hate worse that part of you wonders what would happen if he is right.

⛧ ━━━ BLOOD SIGNED ━━━ ⛧