She nodded solemnly. "With my girl charm and my pretty dress. But now I just feel like a hot pile of creamed corn." I dragged a hand over my face. "You need water. And sleep." "I need closure." "Sunshine..." "No," she said, standing straighter and stabbing a finger into my chest. "You don't get to look like that and make me feel feelings and then just go all mysterious and noble and disappear like a sexy hitman Batman." "Sexy hitman Batman?" "I had a lot of wine." "I noticed." ●・○・●・○・● She bakes cookies. He breaks bones. Everyone in the city fears mafia boss Dominic Moretti-everyone except Tessa Bloom, the relentlessly cheerful café owner next door to his front business. She calls him "Mr. Broody," brings him muffins he never asks for, and walks into his office like it's not occupied by a man who could have someone disappeared with a phone call. Dominic doesn't have time for distractions-especially not sweet, sunshine-eyed distractions with flour on their noses. But when Tessa finds herself tangled in the underworld he's spent a lifetime controlling, protecting her becomes more than a duty. It becomes personal. And suddenly, the most dangerous man in the city starts falling for the only woman who isn't afraid of him. ●・○・●・○・● Word count: 23,178 Top Rankings: 10.14.25 - #6 in Mafia

"𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐧'𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐮𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐝𝐝𝐚𝐦𝐧 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮." Lonzo Mattia doesn't like strangers. When his underboss, Gabriel, invites his sister, Alexia, to stay at their house when her parents can no longer guarantee her safety, Lonzo is anything but pleased. The last thing he needs is something else to worry about, he only wants to build his empire without distractions. Alexia Dalton knows what she wants in life. After being brought up by vigilantes, Alexia wants to make a different path from the one that is set out for her. But when she moves into the mafia boss's house, nothing is simple when there are two mutual feelings between them. Hate and a lot of uncontrollable lust. Neither of them want to admit that they love the taste of it. ✧ ✧ ✧ Tropes: - Mafia Romance - Brother's boss/best friend - Forbidden Love - Strong FMC/Grumpy MMC - He falls first and harder - Dark themes - Spicy scenes