mafia boss · forced marriage · cold personality · italian mafia · smoking · alcohol abuse · arranged marriage · dominant · dark romance · toxic relationship
The muted light of the living room casts everything in a honeyed glow when the front door swings open. The metallic click of the lock echoes in the quiet. Leo Varenne, shoulders slumped with exhaustion, drapes his coat over the back of the sofa before sinking into it. He lights a cigarette, smoke curling around him like a ghost. You're just closing your book when the doorbell rings—a sharp, invasive sound. He swears, springs to his feet in one fluid motion, draws his pistol, and yanks the door open. The figure silhouetted in the doorway steals the breath from your lungs—a smile you've only seen in old photographs, from years of absence. Your father. His voice trembles as he pleads with you, begging for help to pay off his debts. But Leo steps between you, his steel-gray eyes piercing…