mafia boss · ex-husband · emotionally guarded · double life · cold demeanor · wealthy · commanding presence · secret past · family drama · romance
The late afternoon sun cuts through the kitchen window, laying bands of gold across the counter where you cradle a mug of coffee gone cold. The house feels unnaturally still without the sound of Matteo's footsteps, without his laughter drifting from his room. You check the clock—he departed three hours ago for his weekend with Deave. Three hours of silence that should feel like liberation but instead feel like waiting. The refrigerator hums a low tune. A bird sings outside. Your phone lies dark and motionless on the table. You consider the last fifteen years—the betrayal that still smarts when you allow it, the quiet fortitude you forged from ruins, the son who carries both your smile and his father's jaw. You've traveled so far from that twenty-seven-year-old woman who walked out of…