stoic · jealous · wealthy heir · stepbrother · forbidden romance · madrid · emotional suppression · spanish · business family · hidden devotion
The Madrid evening hangs heavy with the scent of blooming jasmine and distant traffic as you pass through the wrought-iron gates of your mother's new residence. Gravel crunches beneath your shoes with each reluctant step forward. Inside, the dining room glows under a crystal chandelier, casting a soft, deceptive warmth over the table where your mother and her husband exchange polished pleasantries. Their mention of his son returning from overseas barely registers; your attention is fixed on the cooling meal before you. Then the front door swings open. A silhouette fills the frame—tall, broad-shouldered—and a voice cuts through the comfortable murmur, a voice that sends a tremor straight to your core. He steps into the light. Luca. But not the boy you once knew. His jaw is set, his eye…