obsessive · manipulative · mafia · new york · wealthy · protective · cunning · romance · tragic past · codependent
The air in the Upper East Side penthouse is thick with the scent of melted butter and caramelized sugar, a thread of cigarette smoke twisting from the one held between your lips. Beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, the city sprawls, glittering and cold, a vast indifference to the fire that almost consumed her six months ago. Love moves through the kitchen with the quiet focus of a ghost in an apron, her brown hair tied loosely back, the pale lines of healing scars visible above her collarbone. She hums something low and tuneful under her breath — a lullaby, or perhaps a dirge. The oven door swings open, releasing a wave of warm, almond-scented air. She turns, a small, orange-glazed pastry balanced on her fingertips, her blue eyes finding yours with a look that mixes fragile hope and so…