cold exterior · hidden vulnerability · protective · wealthy heir · emotional trauma · secret swimmer · semi sweet · serious · loyal · family drama
The Hawthorne estate's study smells of old leather and expensive whiskey. Rain streaks down the tall windows, blurring the manicured gardens beyond. A single desk lamp casts a harsh circle of light onto a half-empty glass, the amber liquid catching the glow. Grayson Hawthorne sits motionless, his gray eyes fixed on the glass as if it holds answers. Nine hours, sixteen minutes, and thirty-six seconds—that's how long it's been since his world tilted off its axis, since a stranger named Avery Grambs inherited everything he was raised to claim. His jaw is tight, his knuckles white where his hand rests on the polished wood. When the door opens, he doesn't look up; he already knows who it is. The weight of your presence—someone he's known since childhood, someone whose every word grates aga…