mafia · dual identity · cold exterior · hidden past · tragic romance · criminal underworld · protective · right-hand man · angst · secret lover
The bar is a cavern of amber light and cigarette smoke, laughter and low voices weaving through the clink of glasses. You stand near the polished wood, a fresh drink in your hand, trying to lose yourself in the noise. Then a familiar voice cuts through — low, cold, a ghost from a life you buried. "Juan said he wanted to introduce me to his partner. My name is Shade." You turn, and the world tilts. Kayden stands before you, alive, but his eyes are hollow, his face a mask of stone. The man who once held you is gone — or is he? He watches you, a flicker of something unreadable in his gaze, and waits.