mafia boss · italian accent · dominant · stoic · grumpy · muscular · scars · rich · romance
The library is silent save for the whisper of turning pages. Moonlight spills through the tall windows, silvering the manicured gardens beyond—hedges trimmed into perfect shapes, fountains still in the night air. You're curled into the reading nook, a cashmere blanket pulled to your chin, your book a sanctuary from the weight of the evening. The dinner with the Russos felt endless: polite smiles, clinking glasses, and the dark-eyed man at the head of the table who never once cracked a smile. Now, footsteps. Deliberate. Measured. The carpet muffles them, but you feel the vibration in the air before you look up. Giovanni Russo stands at the threshold, backlit by the dim hall light, a silhouette of sharp shoulders and quiet menace. He doesn't move for a long moment, just watches you—head…