
A Fight For Identity
Amilachi F. Gidado · Ongoing · 37.1k Words
Introduction
Silas Reed spins beats to outrun his ghosts. Nico Ash dances like the world’s watching because it is. Nico comes out of the pool in his undershorts dripping wet when he sees Silas getting hard for him, it sparks a connection that would later come to haunt them. But fame’s a bitch: a leaked sex tape, a blackmailer’s greed, and a dead friend’s shadow threaten to snuff them out. Silas’s mom wants him straight, Nico’s broke and breaking, and their festival dream’s on life support. Nico’s all in, but can their fire survive the scandal, the shame, and the ashes of yesterday?
Chapter 1
I’m Silas, and this is where I’m supposed to be—behind the turntables, running this damn show. The sun’s blasting down on this pool party like a furnace, hot enough to fry an egg on the deck, and I’m soaked already, sweat pouring off me in buckets. My bare chest’s glistening, dripping over the ink sprawled across my skin—tattoos I got half-drunk and never regretted—and I don’t give a crap how I look, ’cause I feel it. The bass is pumping through these beat-up speakers, loud and deep, rattling the ground under my sneakers, shaking the cheap plastic table my gear’s perched on. I’m in my zone, headphones slung loose around my neck, one ear free so I can hear the crowd losing their minds—yelling, splashing, going nuts. This place is a madhouse—water flying, people hollering, some dude cannonballing into the pool like he’s auditioning for a stunt show. Total mess, but it’s my mess, and I’m eating it up. Shirt’s long gone, tossed somewhere by the cooler, and I know I look good up here—lean, tanned, owning it. You’ve gotta sell it when you’re the DJ, right? Confidence is half the gig.
I tweak the fader, fingers slick with sweat, keeping the beat tight, crisp, thumping right through their bones. Let my eyes drift over the crowd—they’re wild, screaming, jumping, some drunk guy sloshing beer all over himself and laughing like an idiot. Then I see him. Nico. Haven’t laid eyes on him since high school, back when we’d mess around with beats in his garage and talk big about getting outta that nowhere town. He’s different now, though—sharper, hotter. He’s by the pool, peeling his shirt off slow, like he knows every eye’s on him, showing off a body that’s all lean muscle, tight lines, strong as hell. Word is he’s a dancer now—big deal, famous or something—and damn, it shows. My gaze sticks as he kicks his shorts off, casual, leaving just these tight black briefs that cling to him like a second skin. My mouth goes dry, throat tight. He doesn’t even glance around—just dives into the pool, smooth, fast, cutting the water like a blade, showing off without even trying.
He climbs out, and I’m toast. Water’s streaming down his chest, rolling over his arms, dripping off his fingers, catching the sun in little flashes. Those briefs—wet, plastered to him—hug every damn curve, every line of his thighs, his hips, everything. I can’t peel my eyes away, don’t even want to. His hair’s soaked, flopping over his eyes as he shakes it out, droplets flying, and my heart’s slamming harder than the bass I’m dropping—pounding like it’s gonna bust out of my chest. I try to focus, keep my hands steady on the deck, tweak the sound, but then it hits me—my dick’s waking up, stirring, pushing against my shorts. Oh, crap. I’m supposed to be the cool guy, the one in control, spinning this party into chaos, but Nico’s standing there, dripping wet, and I’m a mess, unraveling fast.
I fumble the fader—fingers slip, clumsy—and the beat stutters, hiccups for a second. Catch it quick, thank God, twist it back into line, but my face is burning, cheeks hot under the sun. He’s looking at me now—head tilted, eyes locked on mine—and I swear he knows, sees right through me. His lips twitch up into this smirk, slow and teasing, and he mouths, “Caught you,” deliberate, like he’s playing with me. I’m caught, yeah, hooked like a fish, but I’m not about to back down. Grin back at him, wide and reckless, mouthing, “Fuck yeah,” trying to play it off like my insides aren’t flipping out. He starts walking over—water still sliding off him, leaving a shiny trail on the concrete—and the crowd’s noise, the music, it all blurs into static. It’s just him, closing in, that smirk growing, pulling me like a damn magnet.
He stops at my booth, leans on it casual, elbows propped like he owns the whole damn place. “You always this obvious?” he says, voice low, cutting under the roar of the party so it’s just for me. I laugh, shaky, shaking my head to clear the fog rolling in. “Only when it’s worth it,” I shoot back, and my eyes drop—can’t help it—down to those briefs for a split second before snapping back up to his face. He’s close now—too close, close enough I can smell the chlorine on him, sharp and wet, mixing with something warm, something that’s just Nico, hitting me hard. My pulse is racing, thumping in my ears, and I don’t know if it’s the heat baking me or him standing there, messing with my head. “You think I’m worth it?” he asks, half-joking, but there’s this spark in his eyes—dark, daring me to bite.
“Hell yeah,” I say, and it comes out rough, scratched raw, like I’ve been yelling all day. He grins, big and bright, and I feel that buzz—like the air’s crackling, charged up right before the beat drops, ready to explode. We don’t talk much after that—don’t need to. Dunno who moves first—me, him, doesn’t matter—but suddenly we’re slipping behind the deck, ducking out of sight from the crowd, a tangle of heat and want. My back slams the wall, rough stucco biting my skin, and Nico’s on me, fast. His hands press hard into my chest—wet, warm—and his lips crash into mine, wild and messy, like we’ve been starving for this since forever.
It’s chaos—his mouth hot, tasting like pool water and something sweet I can’t pin down, maybe soda he drank earlier. I’m lost in it, hands grabbing at his slick skin, pulling him tight against me, feeling every inch. He pushes closer, grinding into me, our dicks hard, straining through our shorts, and I groan into the kiss—loud, sloppy—making him smirk against my lips. Music’s thumping out there, crowd screaming, water splashing, but back here, it’s just us—sweat, heat, this insane rush tearing through me. My fingers dig into his hips, holding him there, and he presses harder, hips rocking, making my head spin, vision blurring at the edges. We’re panting, breathless, and I don’t care if anyone hears, don’t care if they catch us. It’s Nico—Nico from back then, Nico now—and me, and it’s real, raw, slamming into me like the drop I didn’t see coming.
We pull apart, gasping, air burning my lungs, and his taste lingers—sharp, sweet, stuck on my lips. The crowd’s still going nuts out there, bass shaking the ground, but behind this deck, it’s quiet—just our ragged breaths, chests heaving, and this fire we’ve sparked, smoldering between us.
Last Chapters
#39 Chapter 39: A Promise (Silas POV)
Last Updated: 1/19/2026#38 Chapter 38: The USB’s Truth (Silas POV)
Last Updated: 1/19/2026#37 Chapter 37: Anchors (Nico POV)
Last Updated: 1/19/2026#36 Chapter 36: A Day Away (Silas POV)
Last Updated: 1/19/2026#35 Chapter 35: Close Call (Silas POV)
Last Updated: 1/19/2026#34 Chapter 34: United Front (Silas POV)
Last Updated: 1/19/2026#33 Chapter 33: How We Began (Nico POV)
Last Updated: 1/19/2026#32 Chapter 32: Partners in Crime (Silas POV)
Last Updated: 1/19/2026#31 Chapter 31: Safe Haven (Silas POV)
Last Updated: 1/19/2026#30 Chapter 30: The Underground Dance Battle (Nico POV)
Last Updated: 1/19/2026
You Might Like 😍
The Princess's Revenge
Alpha Logan is an illegitimate son whose mother disappeared when he was 10 years old. He grew up suffering from humiliation and lacking maternal love.
Alpha Logan saves Valencia at Marcus's funeral, which seems to be destined by fate—part of the Moon Goddess's grand plan.
As Valencia accidentally discovers prophecies in Logan's mother's diary that seem to be related to her, the truth gradually surfaces. Valencia appears to be merely a tool in a princess's revenge plot. How will Logan and Valencia navigate their path amid the national war and pack politics?
Taste of Fate: The Vampire King's Human Mate
He reached for the back of my head and pulled me up just enough to reach my neck. When his fangs slid into me, the pain was instant, electric. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. My hands found his shoulders, clawing for something to hold. My legs kicked. Tears streamed down my cheeks.
He moaned against my throat as he drank, and the sound was devastating.
The Dark Witch & The Alpha Book 2
The vampire queen (Ambrosia) and Pythia will become close and discover the true origins of their pasts. They rely on each other when their mates are not around. New family is discovered and it is time they all come together to face one of the toughest moments in the dark witches history.
Reborn: My Biased Brothers Beg Me To Come Back
She genuinely took in Regina, the butler's daughter, only to be constantly manipulated by this cunning and manipulative woman.
Regina gradually stole the love from her three brothers.
Arabella was forced to give Regina blood transfusions time and again, her weight plummeting to a mere eighty-eight pounds.
Ultimately, under the relentless pressure from her brothers, she jumped out of a window in despair and died. Her last words were,
"What about Regina's blood transfusions?"
When she opened her eyes again, Arabella found herself reborn three years earlier—the very day Regina appeared at her doorstep crying, begging for help.
Looking at the pitiful, tearful girl before her, Arabella smiled.
No more soft-heartedness.
No more groveling.
Instead, she "kindly" arranged for Regina to move into the servants' quarters, to earn her own living through honest labor.
Faced with her brothers who sided with her, she no longer bothered to please them.
And towards her former fiancé, Theodore, whom she had once fawned over, she remained cold, distant, and indifferent.
Moreover, in this life, they would discover that her identity was far more than just the eldest daughter of the Oberon family.
The Alpha & The Vampire Queen
Whips crack against her skin, blood pooling on the cold stone floor, while her mother's pleas fade into silence, abandoning her to the monster's wrath. Xander's protective cries turn to accusations under Penny's dark spells, fracturing their sibling bond into shards of mistrust and isolation.
Where The Ice Gives Way
Blake Atlas scents his mate the moment Charlotte arrives. The bond hits hard and unmistakable, but Charlotte doesn’t recognise it. She doesn’t know why her chest keeps pulling toward the one boy she absolutely cannot afford to want. Blake is Charlie’s new hockey captain. Charlie’s chance at making something good. Charlie makes it clear; his sister is off-limits and Blake tries to do the right thing, but secrets don’t stay buried forever. Rogues prowl the edges of town. The ice cracks. The bond tightens. Then Charlotte’s rare white wolf awakens, the very thing that makes her powerful, also makes her a target.
Shanti needs Shakti. (Peace needs strength.)
Where the Ice Gives Way is a slow-burn YA paranormal romance filled with fated mates, protective alpha energy, fierce sibling loyalty, found family pack bonds, hurt/comfort, and quiet, aching tension. It’s a story about first belonging, learning to be cared for, and what happens when the girl who has always held everyone else up finally falls, and someone catches her.
Goddess Of The Underworld
When the veil between the Divine, the Living, and the Dead begins to crack, Envy is thrust beneath with a job she can’t drop: keep the worlds from bleeding together, shepherd the lost, and make ordinary into armour, breakfasts, bedtime, battle plans. Peace lasts exactly one lullaby. This is the story of an orphan pup who became a goddess by choosing her family; of four imperfect alphas learning how to be better. Steamy, fierce, and full of heart, Goddess of the Underworld is a reverse harem, found-family paranormal romance where love writes the rules and keeps three realms from falling apart.
Pregnant by My Husband's Rival Alpha
Those words should have destroyed me, but the truth was worse: I'd been used as a broodmare by the man who swore to love me, set up in a hotel room with a stranger because My husband Alexander Cross couldn't father children himself, and now I carried the secret babies of Damon Lester—the most powerful and dangerous Alpha in San Loris—while my own family replaced me with the daughter they'd always wanted. But when that same stranger's doctor appeared at my door, when twenty million dollars exchanged hands over a fake perfume bearing my secret identity, and when Damon's gray eyes locked onto mine with recognition I couldn't afford, I realized my carefully hidden life as the legendary perfumer Vera was colliding with a pregnancy that could cost me everything.
Could I protect my babies from the husband plotting my death, hide my true identity from the Alpha who's been hunting me for years, and reclaim the freedom I'd buried along with my dreams—even if it means standing alone against the wolves who see me as nothing more than a womb to be used and discarded?
Mated to Her Alpha Instructor
Weeks later, our new Alpha combat instructor walks in. Regis. The guy from the woods. His eyes lock on mine, and I know he recognizes me. Then the secret I've been hiding hits me like a punch: I'm pregnant.
He has an offer that binds us tighter than ever. Protection… or a cage? Whispers turn ugly, darkness closes in. Why am I the one without a wolf? Is he my salvation… or will he drag me to ruin?
Mated To My Ruin: A Dragon's Debt
But the prince lied. The dragon she touched bound itself to her soul and now she is trapped in the vampire kingdom with a king who has waited centuries for her return. King Caelan remembers everything. The love she destroyed and the great war she started. The lives she burned to ash with the very dragon now living inside her.
She remembers nothing.
He wants her to suffer for crimes she cannot recall. She wants to survive long enough to save her sister. But the bond between them refuses to stay buried and the dragon has its own plans. When she turns twenty and her fae powers awaken, Nyx discovers the truth is far more twisted than centuries of hatred.
The prince who sent her was the one who destroyed her family. The king who hates her saved the only person she loves. And the past life she cannot remember might be the key to stopping another war.
This time she will not run. This time she will burn the world herself if that is what it takes.
A Queen Among Darkness (Book 4 in the Gods' Saga)
For centuries, she has been on the run, helping the supernatural community under the cloak of anonymity while she works to clear her name and save the very people after her from destruction.
Enemies are closing in, but an unexpected complication befalls her when she realises she’s been fated to someone who wants her species exterminated. After all, an evil chance seldom comes alone.
A Queen Among Darkness is the 4th book in the Queen Among Series/The Gods' Saga. This is an interconnected series. To see how it ends, I recommend reading the full series.
Books in the series in order:
A Queen Among Alphas - Book 1
Bite-Size Luna - A Queen Among Alphas Prequel (available under book 1)
A Queen Among Snakes - Book 2
A Queen Among Blood - Book 3
A Queen Among Darkness - Book 4
Whole Again - A Queen Among Alpha's spin-off (available under book 1)
A Queen Among Tides - Book 5
Valor, Virtue, and Verve - Tides Prequel Spin-off (will be available under book 5)
A Queen Among Gods - Book 6
Runaway Empress - A Queen Among Snakes Prequel (will be available under book 2)
A Queen Among Tempests - Book 7
Dark Vocation - Darkness spin-off (will be available under book 4)
A Court of Arcane Souls Anthology (side character short stories exclusive to Ream)
Royal Shadow Series (Next Generation Coming Soon)












