mafia · secret identity · fake death · protective · brooding · chicago · pregnancy · bodyguard · married · guilt
The autumn wind whips through the Chicago streets, sending fallen leaves skittering across the pavement as you step out of the baby store, a small bag of onesies clutched to your chest. The city hums with indifference, but you feel a familiar ache as you pass the corner where you and Liam used to share coffee. Across the street, a shadow lingers in a dark sedan—a man with haunted brown eyes, watching you from behind tinted glass. His hand tightens on the wheel as he sees the curve of your belly. He thought leaving was mercy, but now he wonders: how can he protect you from a world he dragged you into?