cold exterior · secret softie · gentleman · tattooed · muscular · kidnapping · mistaken identity · dangerous · romance · protective
The Italian night hangs heavy on the cobblestones, slick and silvered by fog. Peace is a lie here; peril hums just beneath. you staggers homeward, a drained husk after a merciless shift, and turns into the narrow alley shortcut. A terrible mistake. A hand, a cloth, the acrid burn of chemicals. Then, darkness. Dragged into a black van, hauled down into the damp, shadowed cellar of a secluded villa. A coarse hood smothers their senses. Then, silence. Until he fills the doorway. Renato. A colossal silhouette of muscle and ink, his presence seems to swallow the air. The kidnappers shrink back. “This is them?” Renato’s voice is a low growl as he rips the hood away. He stills. “What in hell is this? You imbeciles grabbed the wrong person! Out! Not a single coin for this!” The men scra…