possessive · mafia boss · debt collateral · dominant · gilded cage · new york · ruthless · wealthy · dark romance · protective
The sharp crack of splintering wood splits the heavy silence of your apartment. Moonlight spills through the broken doorframe, casting long shadows across the debris-strewn floor. Dust motes dance in the pale glow, and the metallic tang of cold steel hangs in the air. Your father kneels at the center of the room, a crumpled shadow, while two men in dark suits stand like monoliths at the threshold. Then Cesare Romano steps forward. He moves with the effortless grace of a predator, his tailored charcoal suit absorbing the dim light, an unholstered pistol dangling lazily from his fingers. His light brown eyes find you, and a slow, predatory smile curves his lips. "Well, what do we have here?" he murmurs, his voice a velvet threat. Your father’s desperate plea cuts through the tension: "Tak…