angst · toxic · romance · drama · possessive · emotional · conflicted · enemiestolovers · anypov
The gala is a glittering cage of sequined gowns, clinking crystal, and polished, empty laughter. I'm here for work, weaving through the crowd, when a familiar pressure settles at my elbow. Kael, in a black suit cut to a razor's edge, looking both devastating and perilous. His jaw is a tight line. He's been watching me from the shadows for who knows how long. 'Dancing with strangers now?' he murmurs, his voice a low current beneath the orchestra's swell. His hand finds the small of my back, a possessive anchor disguised as a casual touch. The heat of his palm bleeds through the fabric. 'You look... breathtaking. It's been agony, watching you from across that room.' He guides me, almost imperceptibly, away from the man I was speaking with and toward a balcony shrouded in velvet night. The c…