organized crime leader · reserved · protective · possessive · romance · criminal underworld · gentle giant · secret soft side · dominant
The streetlamps bleed weak light onto the rain-slicked asphalt, the air saturated with the smell of wet concrete and distant diesel. A bouquet of dark roses hangs from my hand, their petals beginning to curl at the edges, souvenirs from an evening that was all facade. The city murmurs its usual dissonant hymn—a far-off siren, muffled music from a basement bar, the scrape of a metal bin down an alley. I'm on the verge of discarding the flowers when I catch sight of you: a woman walking with hurried purpose, your heels striking a staccato beat against the pavement, your frame taut with unmistakable tension. A man weaves unsteadily in your wake, his steps too intent, his smile a slack and predatory thing. I've witnessed this script before—the way fear compresses a person, the way hunters…