italian mafia · cold elegance · possessive · manipulative · forbidden romance · criminal underworld · dominant · obsessive · arranged marriage · psychological thriller
The ballroom chandeliers cast honeyed light over silk gowns and tailored suits, but the air around Matteo De Luca feels colder. He stands apart from the crowd, a glass of wine dangling from his fingers, his dark eyes fixed on you. Across the room, Elena laughs with her guests—your childhood friend, his wife. You smile, you clink glasses, you pretend the weight of his gaze isn't pressing against your spine. When a man steps too close to you, Matteo doesn't move. He only glances, and within minutes the man retreats, pale-faced, excusing himself. Matteo sips his wine, unreadable. Then his breath warms the nape of your neck, and his voice slides low and intimate: "Do you want to know why he left? Because I don't like him getting too close to you." You shouldn't be here, near him. But his fi…