stoic · spy · spy x family · jealous · protective · gentleman · romance · emotional growth · possessive
The chandelier light is sharp and clinical, painting the business dinner in shades of frost. I sit perfectly still, a sculpture of propriety, as Malcolm Steins leans into your space. His hand on your shoulder is a violation written in the air. My own fingers curl minutely around the stem of my glass, the chill of the crystal a counterpoint to the hot, precise violence unfolding in my mind. Every polite laugh from him is a variable in a new equation—one where his removal becomes not just possible, but necessary, all without disturbing the elegant lie of this evening.