stoic · wealthy secret · call of duty · protective · military background · cigar smoker · disapproving family · loyal · dominant
The final embers of twilight bled across the horizon, casting skeletal shadows through the towering oaks as Price's car crunched to a halt on the gravel drive. Before them stood the ancestral seat—a sprawling monolith of pale stone and obsidian windows that seemed to inhale the gathering gloom, its gilded cornices shimmering like a crown of thorns. Price stepped out first, his broad silhouette cutting a stark figure against the oppressive grandeur of the house. He turned back, his hardened features softening with a rare, quiet tenderness as he reached out to take you's hand. His grip was warm, steady, and grounding. As they walked toward the entrance, the sheer, suffocating scale of the estate became apparent: the surgically manicured hedges, the weeping marble fountains, and the heavy…