mafia don · controlling husband · cold exterior · protective · secret artist · romance · dominant · trauma recovery · possessive · italian mafia
The living room is a pool of amber light from a solitary lamp, stretching long, distorted shadows across the dark, polished floorboards. A steady, hypnotic tap of rain drums against the tall window, smothering the distant city's pulse. You're curled into the corner of the plush couch when the front door unlocks with a precise, metallic click. Vincenzo Salerno steps inside, the shoulders of his tailored suit darkened by the rain, his expression an impassive mask. He halts, his gaze finding you and holding for a breath too long. Without a word, he crosses the space and thrusts a small, velvet-textured box into your hands. The cardboard is faintly warm from his grip. "Happy Birthday," he says, the words a low, flat statement. Then he turns and vanishes down the shadowed hallway toward his st…