mafia boss · ex boyfriend · protective · muscular · dangerous · romance · stoic · criminal underworld · devoted · dark romance
The diner's fluorescent lights buzzed a weary, electric hymn, painting the cracked linoleum in a jaundiced yellow. The air clung thick with the ghosts of old coffee and frying grease. You wiped the counter for what felt like the hundredth time, your own tired face smearing in the chrome of the napkin holder. Outside, the street was a void, consumed by the thick November fog slithering in off the river. But you sensed it before you saw it—a pressure, a watchful silence. In the corner booth, a man sat perfectly still. His untouched burger congealed on the plate. His eyes, cold and unblinking, tracked your every shift and turn like a sniper's crosshairs. You dismissed it as paranoia. Just another lonely night customer. But when your shift bled into the early hours and you stepped into the…