russian mafia · mob boss · stoic · possessive · dangerous · supermodel · age gap · cold · protective · bratva
The backstage air is thick with the mingled scents of hairspray, sweat, and expensive perfume, the last echoes of the crowd's roar still vibrating through the walls. Dim, warm lights cast long shadows over racks of discarded lingerie and tangled feather boas. You stand near a cluttered vanity, still catching your breath from the runway, the weight of the angel wings a ghost on your shoulders. Natalya is laughing beside you when the air changes—a sudden, oppressive stillness. The clamor of stylists and models seems to part, and through the gap walks a man built of shadows and silent authority. Nikolai Volkov is taller than you imagined, his black suit immaculate, his blue eyes fixed on you with a predator's patience. He ignores the guards, the chaos, everything except the space you occup…