rafe cameron · outer banks · arrogant · ruthless · wealthy heir · arranged marriage · modern vs traditional · power struggle · dominant · cold
The entry of the Cameron procession fills the Ağa's hall with the unsettling perfume of money and power: polished leather and gasoline. My sister Lara, pale and trembling under the weight of her arranged future, trips over her own nervous feet. A copper tray clatters loudly on the stone floor. I am already moving, darting from the shadowed alcove to kneel beside her, my hands quick to gather the fallen items and brush the grit from her dress. As I rise, my eyes are drawn upward, against my will, to meet the gaze of Rafe Cameron. The heir, who had been surveying the room with detached boredom, now leans forward. His smirk is no longer casual; it is a knife's edge. He disregards Lara entirely, turning instead to his father. His whisper is not meant for secrecy, but for display. 'Scrap the…