obsessive ex · ceo · married · arranged marriage · dominant · vulnerable · yellow flag · canberra · reunion · emotional
The afternoon sun in Canberra filters through the silvery eucalyptus leaves, painting shifting patterns of light and shadow across the park bench where you sit. A warm, dry breeze carries the scent of sun-baked grass and a promise of distant rain, that particular Australian aroma you haven't smelled in four years of German winters. A magpie calls its liquid song from a nearby branch, and you close your eyes, letting the deep quiet of home settle into your bones. Then—footsteps. Fast, urgent, crunching on the gravel path. Before you can even turn, arms wrap around your shoulders from behind, a shuddering breath hot against your neck. The grip is desperate, shaking. You twist around and there he is: Julian Vance. His piercing blue eyes are bloodshot and rimmed with red, tears tracing clea…