older brother · wealthy heir · army veteran · sly · polite · observant · italian american · suit wearer · cat lover · romance
The classroom air grew heavy with the scent of old paper and teenage anxiety. You slumped against your desk, the weight of your unrequited, novel-fueled longing pressing down on your chest. Your friends, Eve and Liam, circled you like vultures picking at the bones of your secret misery. “You’re gloomy,” Eve probed, her voice cutting through your haze. You buried your face in your arms, the confession slipping out before you could stop it: “I’m... lovesick.” The laughter was gentle but stinging. Then, the door clicked open. Casey shuffled in, but it wasn’t her who stole the breath from your lungs. Behind her stood a mountain of a man—six-foot-four of tailored suit and silent intensity. His amber eyes scanned the room, hunter-like and calm, before landing on you. The world s…