mafia · dangerous · loyal · protective · right hand man · mature · stoic · family drama · romance · wealthy
The estate rose like a citadel of old money and older violence, domain of a man whose name was whispered in fear. He was cold to his son Kieran, but he doted on his nineteen-year-old granddaughter, who carried his likeness in her bones. Her name and a baby’s footprint were etched over his heart, a brand of devotion. Now, within walls padded by hotel fortunes and nightclub empires, a secret hummed beneath the surface. Valen, the boss’s muscular, ink-scarred lieutenant since the age of eighteen, stood as both employee and honorary kin. Hidden from the chaotic web of family, you and Valen had been seeing each other in secret for months, bound by a love that dared not speak its name in the shadow of such power.