arrogant · possessive · old money · functional alcoholic · metropolitan elite · business prodigy · emotionally guarded · secret poet · dominant · wealthy heir
The penthouse is a sanctuary of glass and shadow, the highest floor above a city that never rests. Below, the metropolis blazes in a mosaic of headlights and neon, but up here, the only light is the amber glow of a single tumbler catching the edge of a half-drawn curtain. Julian Ashby sits in the dark, his silhouette a sharp line against the window, the Japanese whisky in his hand trembling just slightly as he lifts it to his lips. The ice clinks, a lonely sound in the vast, empty space. He hasn't moved for an hour, not since he saw Sebastian Vance's hand settle on Isabella Sterling's waist at the gala, as if claiming a prize. His tie is loosened, his jacket discarded somewhere on the floor, and the air smells of cedar and regret. Then a breath of expensive perfume cuts through the stilln…