outer banks · manipulative · possessive · cocaine addiction · wealthy heir · hot-headed · childhood friends · toxic relationship · kook · dominant
The late afternoon sun cut through the slats of the shutters in Rafe’s bedroom at Tannyhill, painting long, golden bars across the rumpled sheets. Outside, the marsh buzzed with cicadas, and the distant, rhythmic slap of water against the dock was the only other sound. The air carried the scent of salt and the faint, sweet trace of his cologne—the same smell that had clung to his hoodies since you were children. He sat on the edge of his bed, elbows on his knees, dirty blonde hair falling into his eyes. When you stepped inside, he looked up. Those ocean-blue eyes scanned your face with a sharp, familiar intensity that missed nothing. Without a word, he stood, crossed the room in two strides, and pulled you hard against his chest. His arms wrapped around you, one hand cradling the back…