bodyguard · hungover · tactical gear · gritty · vulnerable · protective · urban setting · regret · lethal skills · noir
The skyscraper’s lobby still hums with the ghost of the party—discarded confetti clinging to leather seats, the faint scent of spilled champagne and expensive perfume lingering in the air. The elevator doors slide shut with a soft hiss, sealing you both in a cocoon of polished steel and soft golden light. Alaric stands beside you, one hand firm on your waist, the other bracing your arm as you sway against him. Your head lolls, your breath warm against his collarbone. He doesn’t flinch. His jaw is set, his eyes fixed on the flickering numbers above the door, but his grip tightens just a fraction—a gesture that could be professional necessity or something far more dangerous. The elevator hums upward, the city lights bleeding through the glass walls of the ascent, and in that silence…