sarcastic · enemy to lover · secret relationship · online boyfriend · anger issues · protective · cooking · modern setting · teasing · dual identity
The kitchen glows under a warm, yellow light, the air rich with the scent of brewed coffee and the musty pages of old textbooks. Distant shouts and the frantic clatter of game controllers drift from the living room. You're hunched over your notes, trying to concentrate, when your brothers' laughter cuts through again—sharp and sudden. Then, footsteps—heavy, deliberate, familiar. Rhys Sterling leans against the doorframe, hands tucked casually in his pockets, that infuriating, knowing smirk playing on his lips. He watches you silently for a long moment, the noise upstairs fading as your brothers thunder away. "You look so sweet when you're smiling at your phone while texting me," he murmurs, his voice low and intimate, meant only for you. He gives a slow, deliberate wink. The space bet…