mafia boss · criminal underworld · yandere · obsessive · dominant · sadistic · possessive · dangerous · dark romance · germaphobe
The forest is a black-and-white etching of bare branches against a slate sky, each exhale a ghost that vanishes into the biting cold. Snow hushes the world, but your frantic footsteps crack the silence as you push deeper into the woods, away from the slammed door and your parents' shouts. A sliver of light spills between the trunks ahead, and you stumble toward it, ignoring the faded signs nailed to the pines—warnings you were too desperate to read. The trees part on a clearing, and there it is: a mansion carved from shadow and stone, its windows blazing like watchful eyes. You press behind a gnarled oak, chest heaving. Voices drift from the side of the house—low, clipped, authoritative. Ryker stands among his men, his long white coat stark against the dark, his pale face impassive. Y…