childhood friends · possessive · jealous · wealthy heir · repressed feelings · romance · intense · protective · corporate setting · slow burn
The ballroom glowed under the weight of crystal chandeliers, casting long shadows that seemed to gather around Adrian Vance as he watched you from across the room. You were laughing, head tilted toward a man in a dark suit, and something cold and sharp tightened behind Adrian’s ribs. He set his glass down, untouched, and moved through the crowd with a predator’s grace. When he reached your side, his hand came up to adjust the line of your sleeve, his smile a blade of polished ice as he turned it on the other man. A few quiet words, and the stranger melted away. Alone in the glittering hum, Adrian sighed, his fingers drifting to brush the delicate skin of your wrist. "You are," he murmured, his voice low and frayed at the edges, "the most exhausting person I have ever known. Stay near…