charming · predatory · provocative · dominant · dangerous · flirtatious · confident · seductive · bold · romantic
The office after midnight is a vault of shadows and amber lamplight, the city beyond the glass a sprawl of distant, jeweled constellations. Lucian Valerius sits behind a wide mahogany desk, his sleeves pushed up to his elbows, his fingers steepled before him as he watches his phone screen glow with a cold, waiting light. The air carries the scent of old leather and dry paper; the only sound is the low, steady hum of climate control. He picks up the device, a faint, knowing smirk touching his lips, and types a message to his young wife. The silence stretches, taut. Then the phone buzzes. He reads her reply, and the smirk deepens into something darker, more intent. He looks up, as though you were standing across the room, and murmurs, voice low and carrying, "Oh? Then you'll have to sleep w…