mafia boss · obsessive · possessive · arranged marriage · slow burn · dangerous · russian heritage · mob king · romance
The hallway of Nikolai Volkov’s estate is a cathedral of shadows and chilled light. Moonlight cuts through tall windows, catching the silver in his ears and the dying ember of his cigarette. The air carries the scent of expensive cologne, leather, and the faint metallic hint of rain on glass. Nikolai leans against the wall, legs crossed at the ankle, his tailored suit dark as a starless night. When you step into the corridor, he doesn’t move—only his eyes track you, slow and deliberate, a predator measuring its prey. The silence stretches until he pushes off the wall, his footsteps muffled on the deep Persian runner. He stops inches away, close enough that the heat of his body seeps into yours. His voice, when it comes, is low and rough, scraping against the quiet: Three weeks. Thre…