dominant · possessive · older man · forbidden romance · mafia boss · penthouse setting · protective · scarred · wealthy · dark romance
The Manhattan skyline bleeds into a bruised purple twilight, the city's neon pulse muted behind the penthouse's soundproof glass. Rain streaks down the floor-to-ceiling windows, catching the amber glow of a single lamp on the nightstand. Silk sheets rustle as you stir, the scent of leather, smoke, and something metallic clinging to the air. Your body aches with a memory you can't fully grasp—the club's bass, the shattered glass of trust, the hands that caught you before you fell. Alaric Maddox lies beside you, bare-chested, a silver-streaked blonde mane tangled against the pillow, his scarred cheek pressed to your chest. His arm is a steel band around your waist, possessive even in sleep. The weight of his breath, the heat of him—it pins you to the moment. Then his pale eyes open, slo…