Chapter 1 - Antonio

New York holds its breath when I walk into a room.

It's the only thing this city ever learned to do correctly. Outside, it's loud—horns blaring, sirens clawing at the night, people screaming into the void like it might scream back. But inside my buildings, inside my world, silence falls the second my footsteps touch the floor.

Not because they respect me.

Respect is fragile.

They're quiet because they're afraid.

Fear lasts.

I step through the glass doors of Seraph and watch the shift happen. The men gathered in the lobby straighten as if someone yanked a string through their spines. Conversations die. Eyes drop. Hope drains.

Good.

One of them—small, sweating, already apologizing with his posture—moves an inch too close. I stop walking. He freezes like prey. People call me Il Mostro, which is the term for the Monster. I never argued with them. Monsters don't need to explain themselves.

"Is there a reason you're standing in my way," I say, my voice low and calm, "or are you trying to test how short my patience is today?" He stammers something useless. I'm barely listening. What fascinates me isn't the trembling—it's the anticipation of it. Fear is more honest before it peaks, in the moment when a man realizes he's made a mistake but still thinks he might survive it.

I let him sweat for one more heartbeat. Then I walk past him, my suit brushing the air, not him. I don't need to touch people to break them. That's the beauty of power: the threat is enough.

The room exhales when I'm a few steps away and I hold back the laugh that wants to bubble out of me.

Pathetic.

I don't glance back. I don't acknowledge the whispers. I built this city on silence and consequences, and everyone knows the rules:

I don't forget.

I don't forgive.

Not anymore.

They think the monster makes me untouchable. They're wrong. The monster just keeps me alive.

For now.

Authors note - 

Okay, before you jump in — let’s set the vibe.

This isn’t pitch-black, lock-your-doors-and-sleep-with-the-lights-on dark. It’s more morally gray with a soft smirk. The kind of story where the love interest might make questionable choices… but he also remembers your coffee order or tea in Daisy's choice of drink. It's the kind of book where the lines blur a little, the tension runs high, and the chemistry is just dangerous enough to keep things interesting.

This book plays with power, obsession, and emotional intensity — but it also has sweetness tucked into the cracks. There are tender moments. There are soft touches. There’s banter and heat and that delicious push-and-pull that makes you kick your feet while also whispering, “sir… behave.”

The characters aren’t perfect. They mess up. They’re stubborn. They test each other. But at its core, this story is about connection, growth, a lot of banter and two people figuring out how to love in their own slightly chaotic way.

Please read in the right headspace and take care of yourself.

Trigger Warnings:

- Explicit sexual content

- Morally gray love interest

- Power imbalance dynamics

- Emotional intensity

- Jealousy / possessiveness

- Strong language

- References to past trauma

- Physical Abuse ( Not by MMC)

- Kidnapping of the MMC

- Use of weapons.