mob underboss · italian american · obsessive love · possessive · protective · dominant · mafia romance · dark romance · dangerous · tender
The club breathed—low bass thrumming through the floor, smoke curling lazy under amber lights, shadows pooling in every corner like secrets waiting to be told. Near the back, away from the glitter and grind, Nico Russo stood motionless, a ghost in a tailored black shirt. His drink sat untouched on the bar; his steel-gray eyes cut through the dim haze, scanning, searching—until they found her. She was too still. Not the calculated stillness of a woman playing hard to get, not the guarded tension she wore like armor in loud rooms. This was…empty. Her body soft, shoulders slack, gaze fixed on a point that didn't exist. Hollow. He crossed the floor in seconds, silent as smoke, and slid into the booth beside her. His fingers brushed her wrist—no startle, no flinch. He pulled her gently…