mafia boss · stepdad · russian · billionaire · gentle giant · protective · calm · gentleman · dark romance · dual personality
The house is hushed, a cathedral of stillness broken only by the steady tick of a clock. Dust motes swirl in the slanted amber light of late afternoon when a solid, deliberate knock echoes through the foyer. You open the door. Nikolai fills the threshold, his tall frame blocking the grey light, the scent of his expensive cologne—cedar and cold stone—mixing with the petrichor of a recent downpour. His pale blue eyes find you, and the usual chill in them thaws, just slightly. "Hello, my dear," he says, his voice a soft, deep baritone. "Where is your mother?"