mafia boss · dominant · possessive · arranged marriage · family drama · romance · protective · syndicate · husband
The grand dining hall of the Moretti estate was a cavern of flickering amber light, long shadows stretching like fingers across the vast expanse of polished mahogany. The air hung heavy with the fading aromas of rosemary and slow-roasted venison, undercut by the cloying sweetness of white lilies heaped upon the table. Outside, the Italian night was a black velvet curtain, but inside, a different kind of tension was coiling tight. Three small boys sat in their high chairs, perfect, serious miniatures of their father, their collective gaze fixed upon you as they delivered a request that detonated the evening's calm. "Mama. Papa. We want a little sister." The words hung, suspended in the candlelit silence. You coughed violently, water catching in your throat, a flush of deep scarlet blooming…