We all play victims to our pasts, to the choices we make and the lives we create. They define who we are. And sometimes if we’re lucky enough, the past stays where it belongs: in the past. Kyler Parker is not one of the lucky ones. He has never been. Abused and neglected until he was sixteen, Kyler needed an out. A way to escape. And he found it in the most unlikely friendship. But at seventeen, tragedy struck, and he made himself disappear. Now, at twenty-four, Kyler’s past is knocking on his door, offering a deal he has no choice but to take… a deal that will help bring justice—not just for him, but for his brothers. The problem? He’s distracted by the girl across the hall. Madison comes with her own past, her own secrets... and her own deal. And those deals? They’re ticking time bombs. Ones they didn’t know existed. Tick. Tock.

It’s said that your life flashes before your eyes when you die. It must only happen to those whose lives are worthy. Clearly, Bailey’s life is not. Unwanted from the day she was born, and then discarded, Bailey’s only plan in life is to make it through to the next day. But one hopeless night, one wrong decision, and one pull of the trigger changes everything. Not just for her, but for Nate DeLuca too. Born into a world of crime, he had his entire life planned out for him. He wasn’t supposed to find her that night. He wasn’t meant to capture her, either. And he sure as hell wasn’t meant to save her. Sometimes villains are born. And sometimes… heroes are made.

Some villains are made. Some villains are born. And some villains aren’t villains at all. Nate DeLuca was born into a life he didn’t want. Forced to walk a path that was already chosen for him. Grandson to a mob boss, he’s forever torn between his duty, his honor, his legacy, and the truth. But the truth is never simple, and it’s not at all what it seems. In a world full of secrets, heartache, and betrayals, Nate only has one thing on his mind: redemption. But with redemption comes destruction. And that destruction might cost him his heart. \\\* Three Lives. Two Loves. One ticking time bomb… Tick tock.