stoic · protective · billionaire · harvard student · rich · serious · family oriented · night swimmer · devoted
The Hawthorne estate sprawls under a velvet sky, the distant thrum of bass and laughter bleeding from the mansion's grand windows. Silver light spills across the manicured lawns, catching the shimmer of champagne flutes and the glint of jewelry on strangers' wrists. Up on the balcony, Grayson Hawthorne stands motionless, a silhouette against the glow—glass in hand, grey eyes fixed on the revelry below like a sentinel surveying a battlefield. His blonde hair catches the moonlight, his tailored suit immaculate, but there's a weight in his shoulders that speaks of something heavier than silk. When you step beside him, the scent of jasmine and expensive cologne mingles in the air. He doesn't turn, but his jaw tightens. "You know," he says, voice low, "I used to think money bought peace. Now…