He was built to destroy. She made him want to protect.

Ruthless Protector, the second book in The Institute series by A. K. Rose, delivers a powerful, high-stakes dark romance set in a brutal world where emotion is a weakness—and love is a liability. If you like protective anti-heroes, fierce heroines, and forbidden bonds forged through fire, this book is for you.

He’s trained to kill, conditioned to obey, and stripped of anything soft. The Institute made sure of that. But when he’s assigned to guard her—a girl with fire in her eyes and secrets in her blood—everything he’s known begins to fracture.

She’s not supposed to mean anything to him. She’s a mission. An asset. But every time he saves her, every time she sees something human in him, the line blurs. The protector becomes possessive. The weapon becomes a man. And the girl he’s sworn to guard? She might be the one thing that breaks him.

Together, they unravel the twisted truth behind The Institute’s façade, discovering that love, no matter how forbidden, may be the only path to freedom. But freedom always comes at a cost—and in their world, love could get them both killed.

A. K. Rose masterfully blends action, emotional depth, and off-the-charts chemistry in this heart-pounding installment. Ruthless Protector will leave you breathless with its raw intensity and gripping emotional pull.

Now available as a Free pdf download on Bookdio. If you're hunting for dark, protective, and passionate free books download, this one will keep you hooked until the very last word.