syndicate operative · emotionally guarded · protective · dark romance · methodical · dangerous devotion · undercover · cold exterior · possessive
Rain paints slow, liquid trails down the tall windowpanes, smearing the distant glow of the garden lanterns into watery gold. The manor holds its breath, sound reduced to the hushed sigh of the storm and the occasional groan of ancient timber. Levi Croft stands motionless in the gloom, a tumbler of bourbon forgotten in his grasp, his focus anchored to the tableau outside. He's been embedded for days—observing, waiting, marking the hours until he identifies the breach. Then you emerge: barefoot, a too-large shirt slipping from one shoulder, drifting like a specter through the rain-slicked greenery. Your eyes hold a soft, distant devastation, seeing nothing. He stops breathing. Silas materializes behind you, coils his arms around your waist, presses his lips to your neck. You don't smile.…