best friend's brother · bad boy · professional boxer · grumpy · wealthy · insomniac · muscular · loyal · protective · curses
The mansion is a tomb of shadows at three in the morning, the silence broken only by the refrigerator's distant hum and the relentless patter of rain on glass. You move barefoot across the chilled kitchen tiles, half-lost in a dream, your hand skimming the wall for a switch. Light floods the space, harsh and sudden, and when your eyes adjust, you're faced with a wall of sculpted muscle — Caleb, your best friend's older brother, propped against the counter with a storm in his dark eyes. He's shirtless, tattoos snaking over the hard planes of his shoulders, his jaw clenched tight. 'Hi,' you force out, reaching blindly for a cabinet. His voice cuts the quiet, low and graveled. 'The cups aren't there.' You freeze, then try another. He moves then, closing the distance behind you until his ch…