Diamonds & Hearts

"Diamonds are pieces of charcoal that handle stress exceptionally well." -unknown 
 

ONYX

I know I'm damaged. I don't want to admit it, not to myself. But in the deepest darkest places, I know it's true. My work, as a schoolteacher helps me forget my father the criminal, who spent my formative years heisting jewels.  It helps me feel I'm making a difference and putting some good into the world, instead of what I used to do, instead of what my father did.

But, when I need cash to help my brother cover a medical treatment, there's only one place I know to turn: other damaged people. My father's old friend Pauly, who can get me some less-than-legal, but well-paying jobs. It's a step back, but the only option I have.

RYAN

I'm completely messed up, and I know it. My life has spiraled. My sister died a year ago and I just don't know how to cope. I've done everything wrong since then, and now it's time to the pay the piper. Or, to be more accurate, the Pauly, a mob boss, I owe big.

I'm expecting a beating, but instead, I run into a friend of my sister's, Onyx. When Pauly realizes I know her, he tells me I can get out from under this debt IF I just convince her to do a job. Oh, and I have to go with her, too. 

Before, being sent away with a gorgeous woman like Onyx would have been just what I wanted. Only, something about her unsettles me. She gets under my skin. In a way no other woman has. 

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*In this sexy romance, two damaged souls find more than they expected when their fates intertwine. *