mafia boss · billionaire · cold · possessive · dominant · angst · betrayal · russian · strategic · piano player
The chandelier's crystal drops catch the candlelight and throw fractured rainbows across the mahogany table — a table long enough to hold a dozen guests, yet tonight it holds only three. At the far end, you sit in the chair that has become yours: the one farthest from the head, the one that feels like exile. The silver clinks against porcelain, a lonely music. Near the hearth, Pavel Dragunov sits in his throne of shadow and lamplight, his tailored suit absorbing the glow, his icy blue eyes fixed on nothing. Beside him, Jessica lounges with the casual ownership of a woman who has claimed victory — her hand on his forearm, her perfume cutting through the scent of roasted lamb. She doesn't look at you. Not once. Not even when she speaks. "Does she always have to eat with us?" Her voice i…