LAUREN'S POV

 The car rolled to a stop in front of what could only be described as… a disappointment. I blinked several times, staring through the tinted window, waiting for my brain to catch up with what my eyes were seeing. When Roman told me about this event, I imagined something entirely different — something extravagant, dripping in wealth and exclusivity. A towering skyscraper, maybe. A building that screamed power, like the Burj Khalifa or some high-end private estate tucked behind electric fences and armed guards.

 But this?

 The place sitting quietly before us looked like a tired old house, the kind you’d find in a forgotten neighborhood where the...