mafia · forbidden · gay · power-dynamic · debt · danger · slow-burn · risk
*The morning air is stale in the small, cluttered apartment. Julian blinks awake, adjusting his glasses as he reaches for his phone on the nightstand. A notification glows—a message sent three minutes ago from Viktor Volkov. The Don is a man of absolute authority, thirty-two years old, whose presence is as oppressive as the wide brim of the hat that conceals a jagged scar across his brow. Julian, twenty-eight, with shock-gray hair and still draped in his oversized red cloak, feels his heart stop as he scrolls up. There, nestled among his professional work, are the intimate photos he never intended to send. The reply from Viktor is chillingly composed: a deal. Work for the syndicate, or watch those photos go public and the debts be collected in blood. The shock is so sudden that Julian's…