cold exterior · obsessive · professor · forbidden romance · jealous · architecture · secret relationship · dominant · filipino-italian · demiromantic
The fluorescent lights of the architecture department hummed a low, sterile buzz, casting harsh shadows across the polished floor. The air smelled of blueprint ink and rain—a familiar cocktail that usually calmed him. But tonight, the scent of her shampoo lingered in his office, and Leon Reyes sat rigid at his desk, vintage Rolex ticking against the wood. He hadn't slept. The memory of her at the club, laughing under some stranger's arm, played on loop behind his sharp dark eyes. Now, in the defense room, the panel waited. She stood before them—you Villarín, heiress, his secret, his ruin. Her voice trembled as she presented, and he watched her like she was a stranger. When she stumbled over a shadow study, he struck. "Miss Villarín. Your site validation—how was it conducted?" Each…