The air in the villa was thick with tension and the smell of expensive cigar smoke. Ocean stood at the window, his tall frame silhouetted against the city lights below. The muscles in his jaw worked as he watched a car pull up outside.

"He's here," Brian murmured from behind him.

Ocean didn't turn. "Let him in."

Moments later, the door opened and Luca stepped inside, his face betraying his nervousness. No one entered Ocean's inner sanctum without feeling that primal fear.

"You wanted to see me?" Luca's voice cracked slightly.

Ocean finally turned, his dark eyes fixing on the man like prey. "You've been sleeping with the Pakhan's daughter."

It wasn't a question. Luca paled.

"I-I didn't mean—"

"Don't," Ocean cut him off with a gesture. He took a step forward, and Luca instinctively stepped back. "You know the rules. No attachments. Especially not to the enemy."

Luca fell to his knees. "Please, Ocean, have mercy! I love her!"

A cold laugh escaped Ocean's lips. "Love? You think love has any place in this world?" He grabbed Luca's chin roughly, forcing him to look up. "You're weak. And weakness infects everything it touches."

He released him with a push, sending Luca sprawling on the floor. "Get out of my sight before I decide to make an example of you. But if you ever come near her again..." Ocean trailed off, letting the threat hang in the air.

Luca scrambled to his feet and fled without looking back.

Brian watched him go. "You're being lenient."

Ocean's gaze turned icy. "He'll learn. Or he'll die."

---

Three days later, Ocean stood in the rain outside the cemetery where Elena was buried. The black rose in his hand was already wilting under the water.

He didn't notice the woman approaching until she spoke.

"Beautiful flowers for someone beautiful?"

Ocean spun around, his hand going to the gun at his waist before he saw her face.

Time stopped. For a moment, he thought he was hallucinating.

She looked exactly like Elena. Same eyes, same mouth, same way of tilting her head when she was curious.

"Who the fuck are you?" His voice was low and dangerous, every muscle in his body coiled to strike.

The woman didn't flinch, which impressed him. "I'm nobody. Just visiting a relative."

Ocean stepped closer, crowding her personal space until she had to tilt her head back to meet his gaze. He was taller than her by a foot, and he used every inch of that height to intimidate.

"You know who I am."

It wasn't a question. She nodded slowly.

"Then you know what happens to people who play games with me."

Her eyes flickered down to his lips, and something dangerous sparked between them. "I'm not playing games."

Ocean's hand shot out, gripping her throat hard enough to make her gasp. "You look like her. Exactly like her."

He pressed his body against hers, pinning her against the stone wall of the mausoleum. "Tell me why."

Her hands rested on his chest, not pushing him away but not pulling him closer either. "I don't know who you're talking about."

"Bullshit," he growled, his fingers tightening around her throat. "Tell me who sent you."

She smiled, even as her breathing became labored. "Maybe... maybe I came here looking for you."

Ocean felt a surge of something primal and dangerous. This woman was either very brave or very stupid. Either way, she'd caught his attention.

And once Ocean Jiang sets his sights on something, he doesn't stop until he owns it completely.