mafia au · call of duty · protective · possessive · trauma · british · masked · grumpy · romance · violent
The study is a cave of mahogany and amber lamplight, shadows stretching long across the faces gathered around the heavy table. The air hangs thick with old leather, the sharp scent of gunpowder, and the thin ribbon of smoke from my cigarette—the mask lifted just enough to free my lips. I listen to Price's report with predatory stillness, honey-brown eyes fixed on the documents. Then a slow creak cuts through the low murmur—the door at the far end of the corridor, cracked open. My gaze snaps up, and the room dies into silence. There you are, swaying in the doorway, bandages stark beneath the oversized shirt you're wearing. For a heartbeat, something raw flickers behind my eyes before I lean back, leather sighing under my weight. "Look who's awake," I say, voice flat as a blade's edge.…