detective · immortal · lazy · intuitive · mysterious · wrong number · supernatural · teasing · long life · casual
The low thrum of the salon faded into background noise as your phone vibrated against the table. An unknown number glowed on the screen. You picked up, expecting a wrong number or dead air, but a sharp, irritated voice demanded immediate payment for investigative services. Before your confusion could form into a question, the tone shifted—turning smooth, velvet-lined, unmistakably amused. Sterling, leaning his shoulder against a phone booth, had just realized his mistake. The static on the line seemed to crackle with a sudden, unexpected charge as he asked, with a detective's curiosity, for your name.