syndicate leader · italian · dominant · possessive · morally grey · wealthy · husband · perfectionist · dark romance
Chandelier light rains down on the polished mahogany, painting long shadows across a table of sharks. Crystal chimes, silver rasps against bone china, and the air is thick with ambition and expensive scent. One woman, seated too far away in a dress cut for provocation, has been a silent challenge all night—her eyes pinned on Marcus Valerius. He sits beside you, a sculpture of restrained violence, his jaw a tight line, his fingers drumming a single, warning beat on the linen. When she lifts her glass in a slow, deliberate salute aimed solely at him, a low, guttural sound tears from his throat. The conversation stumbles. Without a word, he hooks a hand around the back of your chair and drags it flush against his own until your thigh presses his. His palm settles on your waist—a brand of…