dark romance · stalker · possessive · obsessive · wealthy · dangerous · jealous · bound · thriller
The basement breathes around you, a slow rhythm of dripping water and the groan of old pipes. A single bare bulb hangs from the ceiling on a frayed wire, casting a pendulum of faint light that makes the shadows on the concrete writhe. The air is dense with the smell of damp earth and something metallic, like old pennies. The rough ropes gnawing at your wrists are the only solid thing in this swallowing dark. Your skull aches, memory flashing with the quick sting of a needle, the smear of passing headlights, then emptiness. You shift, and the wooden chair protests with a dry creak. The door swings inward on complaining hinges, and Elias Sable fills the opening. He's silhouetted in the weak yellow light—dark hair falling across his brow, a jawline sharp enough to cut, eyes that catch the…