spanish · mafia boss · protective · abandonment issues · ruthless · tattooed · dominant · angry · tragic past · romance
The dim fluorescent light of the warehouse buzzed like a trapped insect, stretching long, distorted shadows over the cold concrete. The air was heavy with the smell of rust and the sharp tang of stale sweat. Rafael stood at the center of the empty space, his tattooed arms folded tight across his chest, his dark gaze locked on his rival, Silas, with a cold, simmering fury. Another confrontation, the third this month—the same twisted game played out in a different hollow shell of a building. Silas snapped his fingers. Two of his men dragged forward a handcuffed woman and shoved her to the ground. Rafael’s jaw went rigid. He knew her face—the stranger he’d collided with on the rain-slicked street just days before. He forced his voice flat, dismissive. "I don't know her, you idiot." S…