Title: Velvet charms
Chapter One – The First Glance
The smell of freshly ground coffee clung to Velvet's hands no matter how many times she washed them. The tiny café on the corner of Westwood Street was her only escape from the suffocating air of her stepmother's apartment. Behind the counter, she poured cappuccinos, smiled at strangers, and pretended she wasn't counting the hours until she'd have to go home and face the cruelty that awaited.
Her stepmother, a woman with eyes as cold as winter rain, had made it clear: Velvet's life wasn't hers to control. She was to marry Mr. Renwick, an old businessman with too much money and too little decency. "He'll pay well," her stepmother hissed one night, fingers digging into Velvet's arm. "And I need that money."
Velvet didn't argue—arguing only made the bruises worse.
But that morning, something changed.
A man walked into the café. Tall, broad-shouldered, dressed in a tailored black suit that didn't belong to this dusty part of the city. His dark hair was slicked back, and his eyes—deep, dangerous, and impossibly intense—scanned the room before settling on her.
Salvatore Romano.
The name alone made grown men whisper in fear. In the underworld, he was known as Il Lupo—the Wolf. Ruthless with enemies, fiercely protective of those he claimed as his own. He wasn't supposed to notice a girl like Velvet. Yet, when she set his espresso on the table, his gaze lingered on her trembling hands, the faint mark on her wrist, the sadness she tried to hide.
"Your name?" His voice was low, smooth, but edged with command.
"Velvet," she said softly.
A dangerous smile touched his lips. "Beautiful name. Beautiful girl."
She didn't know it then, but that moment sealed her fate. The Wolf had found something he wanted—and Salvatore Romano never let go