She faints in a grocery store—but the mafia boss who catches her notices hidden bruises and uncovers a truth that changes everything

interrupted by gunfire.

A bookshop full of morning light.

A baby asleep against the chest of a man the city once feared.

She had gone out for bread, milk, and eggs.

She had found a life.

Not a simple one. Not a clean one. Not the kind of love written about when people want romance to look polished and safe.

But it was real.

It was theirs.

And it had held against continue reading …