The Paper Bride. Saints of St. Odessa, #2

He vowed to protect her. She vowed never to love a killer. Some vows are made to be broken. Sophia Ivanov survived war zones and impossible choices, trading her missionary work in Sudan for a crumbling clinic in St. Odessa's most dangerous neighborhood. She's seen evil, looked it in the eye and chosen light anyway. But nothing prepared her for Matteo Russo. The mafia heir needs a saint to save his reputation.
She needs resources to save lives. Their arrangement? Six months of fake engagement, then they walk away clean. Except Matteo Russo doesn't do anything clean. He kneels in cathedrals and prays for redemption with the same hands that pull triggers without hesitation. He whispers scripture while orchestrating violence. He's everything Sophia swore she'd never want: dangerous, controlling, built from blood and brutality.
But when he looks at her like she's the only light in his darkness? When he shields her body with his own as bullets fly? When he chooses mercy over vengeance because she asked him to?She's falling. Hard. For a man who thinks love is weakness and faith is a cage. Now a rival syndicate is trafficking women through shipping containers. Dimitri Volkov is circling like a wolf. Matteo's dying father demands blood for betrayal.
And Sophia must decide: does she trust the killer who kneels beside her in prayer, or run before his world swallows her whole?Because in St. Odessa, mercy gets you killed. And loving Matteo Russo might cost her everything, including her soul. A clean mafia romance where faith meets fire, redemption tastes like blood, and the only thing more dangerous than falling for a killer... is watching him fall for you.
Trigger Warning: Violence, trafficking themes (off-page), morally grey MMC, faith crisis, blood and injury