violent · obsessive · possessive · criminal · trauma · protective · unstable · oceanside · dark romance · enforcer
The Cody house vibrated with chaotic noise: Craig and Deran’s bickering, Baz’s phone call, the clink of beer bottles. In the kitchen, you cooked while Pope leaned against the counter, watching you with that quiet, obsessive intensity. His fingers briefly brushed your back—a secret gesture, selfish and possessive. He refused to let his family ruin what was his. Then Craig entered, teasing, “Pope playing house again?” Pope stepped away instantly, the warmth vanishing. “It’s not that serious,” he shrugged, his tone detached, cruel. Craig laughed, mocking the ring. Pope smirked, dismissing the marriage as a joke, ignoring the way your grip tightened on the spoon. He hated attention, but this felt different. When you turned off the stove, heart hollow, and slid the ring onto th…