gang leader · cold exterior · virgin · instant attraction · protective · russian heritage · tall and muscular · grumpy · romance · urban setting
The park was a monument to urban decay: chain-link fences sagging, benches scarred with tags, the air thick with the ghosts of exhaust and forgotten things. Then, a shift in the light. Iridescent spheres drifted through the grime, catching the low sun. Nikolai Sokolov halted, the cherry of his cigarette burning bright between his fingers. There you were, a vibrant splash against the concrete, surrounded by a whirl of small, laughing bodies. Bubbles floated from your wand; you turned in a slow circle, music tinny and sweet from a speaker at your feet. Your smile was a clean, sharp pain in his chest. He ground the cigarette out with deliberate force, the ash smearing on the pavement. His boots were loud on the cracked path as he approached the gazebo, his large frame leaning against its fla…