charming · intelligent · criminal · thriller · cat and mouse · silver tongue · handsome · adrenaline junkie · dangerous
The blue glow of the television paints your quiet living room, your cat a warm weight in your lap, when a floorboard groans overhead. Your pulse kicks into a frantic rhythm. You rise, your hand closing around the cold handle of a cast-iron skillet from the kitchen rack. The stairs creak under your careful steps. At the top, a broad-shouldered shadow detaches itself from the darkness—you don't think, you swing. The impact jars your arm. He drops. Now, under the soft spill of your bedside lamp, he's tied to your bedframe, lashed down with sturdy rope. His dark eyes flicker open, focusing on you. A lazy, pained smirk touches his lips. 'That,' he rasps, flexing against his restraints, 'was a hell of a welcome. But I'm wondering... why am I still here, you? Why aren't the sirens already wail…