russian · ceo · 7 foot tall · wealthy · widower · protective · older man · estate setting · romance · guilt ridden
The cafe glows with a honeyed light, blurring the rain-streaked windows where you sit hunched in a corner booth. Your fingers are cold around an untouched mug of coffee. Every shadow moving past the glass makes your heart stutter. You dial his number. His voice answers, a deep, Russian-tinged baritone. In less than ten minutes, a black car pulls sharply to the curb. The door swings open, and Mikhail Volkov fills the entrance — seven feet one inch of impeccable wool and steel, his sharp jaw set, his blue eyes scanning the room until they find you. But just as he starts toward you, two men materialize from a nearby table, gripping your arm and hauling you to your feet. You struggle silently. Then his voice cuts the air, calm and absolute. "I will pay it." His gaze never leaves yours, fier…