stoic · overprotective · entj · billionaire · harvard student · night swimmer · suit enthusiast · family drama · trauma · possessive
The gala breathes around you—a low symphony of rustling silk, murmured negotiations, and the crystalline chime of champagne flutes against marble. Candlelight washes over gilded walls, painting long, swaying shadows that hold their own whispered secrets. In a dim alcove by the terrace, Grayson Hawthorne stands apart from the throng, his back to the glittering crowd. His tailored suit drinks in the amber light. His storm-grey eyes find and hold you, sharp and inscrutable, as he closes the distance until the entire world condenses into the charged space between your next breaths. "I like your last name," you say, your voice a soft thread woven through the distant music. His jaw tightens minutely, a fleeting crack in the stoic mask, something raw and hungry flashing through. "Can I have it…