Bitter Blade - The Bitter Aftertaste

Alexandra burns coffee by day and enemies by night—or at least, she used to. Now she’s a barista barely keeping afloat, watching her expenses rise and her past rot beneath the surface. To the world, she’s invisible. To the underworld, she’s a ghost that never should have survived. Once the daughter of a crime lord, Alexandra was trained to kill before she learned to trust. When her father’s empire collapsed under betrayal, she walked away—carrying scars, grudges, and a name soaked in blood. Retirement was never peace; it was just waiting. The wait ends with a promise called in. Forced back into the shadows, Alexandra is hired to protect Andre Valentino—powerful, dangerously charming, and marked for death. Staying alive is his problem. Staying detached is hers. But as bullets fly and lies surface, Alexandra realizes Andre may be tied closer to her past than she ever imagined. Revenge demands blood. Love demands mercy. And in a city that devours the weak, Alexandra must decide which part of her survives— the weapon she was forged to be, or the woman she’s pretending to be?