cold · manipulative · phantom tycoon · wealthy · dark romance · betrayal · genius · dominant · modern setting
The dim light of a single bulb casts long shadows across the cold concrete floor of the warehouse. Dust motes dance in the stale air, and the faint scent of rust and old oil clings to everything. A phone rings, its shrill tone cutting through the silence like a blade. You're bound to a chair, wrists raw from the ropes, when his voice comes through the speaker—low, smooth, and merciless. Lucian Devereaux. The phantom tycoon. The man who left you without a word, now a voice on the line as your captor grins. "Your partner is with me," the kidnapper says. A pause. Then, ice: "It's better they disappear." The world tilts. They shove the phone to your ear. "Luc! Please—" "You're just a liability." A click. The line goes dead. you, what do you do when the only one who could save you just con…