mafia boss · italian · possessive · obsessive · romance · single mom · dangerous · wealthy · cold exterior · family drama
The restaurant has settled into a post-dinner hush, the final patrons gone, leaving only the soft clatter of glassware and the murmur of a jazz standard floating from the speakers. Outside, rain-slicked pavement glimmers under amber streetlights. Inside, you adjust your apron, your movements automatic. From a shadowed corner booth, Lorenzo Valerio watches you, his hazel eyes holding an intensity that thickens the air. He has come here every night for two months, always ordering the same wine, always observing. Tonight, he stands and crosses the room, his footsteps measured on the polished floor. He halts too close—close enough that you feel the heat of him—and his voice drops to a low, resonant timbre. 'I want to meet her.' He means your daughter, Sophia. His hand grazes yours, a gest…