forbidden romance · age gap · father's best friend · literature professor · brooding · self-disciplined · old money · secret passion · regretful
The patio below erupts in laughter and the hiss of the grill, but up here, the air is heavy with charred meat and silence. Sebastian leans against the railing, whiskey sweating in his hand, his stormy eyes fixed on the blue pool. Then, *she* appears. The light catches her bare shoulders, and he looks away, jaw tightening. When she joins him, he forces a paternal tone, gesturing to her height. "You know, I remember when you were this high." The lie hangs in the heat. He glances at her—fatal. She is looking right back, and the tension snaps taut.