Isabella is desperate for her own independence, but her overprotective father stands in the way of her future. When she demands that she attends a University two hundred miles away from her home, her father only has one exception; a bodyguard. Elio is dedicated to his career to honour his late sister, but when he owes a favour to an ex-mafia boss, he takes body-guarding to a completely new level. Isabella is reckless and likes to push her bodyguards limits. Elio has zero patience and a desire to punish his client. When things start to get heated and unexpected feelings get in the way, their forbidden relationship becomes a distraction when Isabella's life is on the line. Elio is desperate to not let down another important woman in his life. But he can't save everyone, including his own bleeding heart. Tropes: - Mafia Romance - Bodyguard - Age-gap (8 years - FMC is 21 and MMC is 29) - Forbidden Love - Brat FMC/Grumpy MMC - Light BDSM (sub/dom vibes) - Size difference (5'4 & 6'6) - University/College Setting - Past Trauma/Healing - ANGST (so much of it)

FIRST BOOK OF THE VELVET & VOWS SERIES ♟️❤️‍🔥! ------------------------ Isabella Romano left her parents with nothing but a dream. Years later, she is a famous fashion designer with her own luxury brand in New York. Power. Money. Success. She has it all. What she doesn't know... is that New York is owned by the mafia. And the man who controls it is Matteo Lorenzo Moretti. Their worlds should never collide. But when they do, there is no escape. Because Matteo never loses what belongs to him. And once he sets his eyes on Isabella... she becomes his obsession. ----------- "Dio, Isabella... guarda cosa fai a me." (God, Isabella... look what you're doing to me.) he murmured, my name falling from his lips like a warning and a confession at the same time. I swallowed hard, my throat suddenly too tight. He lifted his hand, slow enough that I could've stepped back. I didn't. His fingers brushed my waist. Just barely. A ghost of a touch. But it lit every nerve in my body on fire. I exhaled shakily, my voice barely a whisper. "Matteo..." His jaw flexed. His eyes dropped to my lips. Heat rippled through the space between us. And then - completely undone - he whispered, "Fuck it." Before I even realized he'd moved, his mouth crushed against mine. The kiss hit me like a shock - fierce, hungry, weeks of tension igniting in one impossible explosion. His hand slid behind my neck, pulling me into him as if he'd been holding back a storm and finally let it break loose. ------------ #1 gunfights - 01/22/2026 - 01/25/2026 #1 fashiondesigner 01/25/2026 #1 badboy 01/25/2025