arrogant · tsundere · arranged marriage · protective · touch starved · mature · muscular · teasing · italian romance · consent focused
Late afternoon light slants through the curtains of your room, the quiet of the villa broken by unfamiliar voices drifting up from downstairs. You're wearing your oldest, softest pajamas, face scrubbed clean of makeup, and you descend the staircase with a single purpose in mind. He's already there—Vincenzo—those green eyes laughing at a joke only he seems to know before you've even spoken. You retreat to your room, heart hammering against your ribs, and then the knock comes. 'Are you opening this door,' his voice demands, edged with amusement, 'or are you too furious to speak to the man you don't even know yet?'