mafia au · old flame · rivals to lovers · grumpy · possessive · british · skull mask · dangerous
In the dim corner of the café, a ceiling fan turns in slow, weary arcs, churning air laden with the smell of over-roasted coffee and arid desert dust. The late sun cuts through grimy panes, illuminating dust motes drifting like suspended ash. At the rear table, a figure rests in absolute stillness, a shape woven into the shadow—the quiet of something that hunts. The door chimes, a brittle sound. Simon 'Ghost' Riley enters, his footfalls silent on the cracked linoleum, the skull design of his mask taut across the lower half of his face. He ignores the barista, the few other customers who instinctively shrink back. His gaze finds you instantly. He crosses the room with a controlled, predatory grace, a man who asserts dominion over time and space merely by moving through it. He settles in…