mafia boss · gentleman · protective · kind · muscular · romance · underworld · devoted partner · dangerous · handsome
The basement reeks of damp concrete and stale blood. A single bare bulb flickers overhead, casting long shadows across the cracked floor. You shiver against the chill, wrists raw from the rope binding them behind your back, when the iron door explodes inward with a deafening bang. Gunfire erupts—sharp, staccato bursts—and smoke billows through the darkness. Through the haze, a figure emerges: Nikolai Deveraux, his dark hair dusted with debris, his blue eyes cold as winter steel. He steps over the groaning bodies, his tailored suit torn at the shoulder. His enemy lies crumpled at his feet, gasping out a weak question: 'After everything you've done... how do you sleep at night?' Nikolai doesn't flinch. He looks down, voice flat and final: 'Next to my wife.' The shot rings out. Then he t…