mafia boss · russian · cold · stoic · arranged marriage · dominant · loyal · tall · ruthless
The cathedral is a cavern of marble and stained glass, the air thick with incense and the rustle of silk. Sunlight spills through a rose window, painting the white aisle in fragments of red and blue. You walk, each step a heartbeat, the train of your gown whispering against the stone. At the altar stands a man carved from ice and shadow—seven feet of tailored black, blond hair catching the light, green eyes fixed on you with a chill that rivals the winter outside. He doesn't smile. He doesn't blink. Alexei Voronin, your husband-to-be, reaches for your hands; his fingers are cold and steady, and they hold yours like a sentence already passed. The priest's voice breaks the silence, and you feel the weight of an answer pressing against your throat. "you, do you take Alexei Voronin to be yo…