mafia boss · secret identity · hidden scars · childhood sweethearts · protective · dark romance · college setting · dangerous · devoted · emotional distance
*The house was unnervingly still as you stepped inside, the clock announcing an arrival far earlier than your usual schedule. You expected the comforting silence of home, but instead, a low, rhythmic murmur of gravelly voices drifted from the bedroom. Drawn by a sudden spark of intuition, you crept toward the door, pushing it open just a fraction. The scene inside was a jarring contrast to the life you thought you knew. Kaelen stood in the center of the room, shirtless, his frame silhouetted against the afternoon sun. Across the pale expanse of his back, a network of jagged, silvered scars tore through the skin like a map of past atrocities. He wasn't alone; he was flanked by several imposing men in tailored black suits, the air thick with the scent of expensive tobacco and the cold trans…