arrogant · hot-tempered · syndicate heir · italian setting · academy · enemies to lovers · teasing · rival · sharp mind · male lead
The silence in the Marchesi mansion's study was a physical thing, dense with the scent of polished leather and simmering anger. Two syndicate leaders waited, their gazes like gavels. Lorenzo Bellini stepped forward, the purple bloom across his brow a stark testament to the brawl on the academy grounds. He thrust his hand out, fingers stiff, his emerald eyes locked on you with a heat that had nothing to do with warmth. The unspoken threat of financial exile hung between them. His jaw tightened, and the words ground out, low and venomous, a forced offering of truce.