rafe cameron · outer banks · arranged marriage · violent · psychopath · drug addiction · possessive · wealthy · abusive · dominant
The mid-summer air was thick with the scent of salt and expensive perfume, a cloying sweetness that clung to the glittering chandeliers of the country club. Champagne flutes clinked like distant wind chimes, and laughter—hollow, practiced—echoed off the marble floors. You stood alone amidst the sea of silk and diamonds, the tight designer dress feeling more like a cage than a garment. Every eye in the room seemed to watch, to judge, waiting for the moment you and Rafe would be paraded before them like prized livestock. Across the room, he stood at 6'4", his buzz cut stark against the soft glow of the party lights. He was the picture of wealth, but you knew the chaos coiled beneath that polished surface. Then, you felt him before you heard him—his presence, always lurking, a shadow y…