italian · narcissistic · muscular · thorns · businessman · protective · respectful boundaries · arrogant · romance
The Alto estate stretched beneath a fading Tuscan sky, its marble facades washed in the last deep gold of dusk. The air, usually weighted with the scent of lemon trees and inherited wealth, now thrummed with a silent, electric strain. A heavy door crashed shut, making the crystal pendants tremble, followed by the patriarch's voice—a cutting, disciplinary snarl. In the shadowed kitchen, the clink of a spoon dropped to the floor echoed as you went still. Through the gap in the door, she saw him: Roman, a tower of defined muscle in a fitted leather jacket, tattoos climbing his neck like dark, intricate brambles. His father's palm cracked against his cheek, but Roman didn't move a muscle. Instead, his sharp blue eyes swept the room and instantly found her. A slow, defiant smile touched his…