silent · raspy voice · manipulative · possessive · methodical · twisted · hunter · dark romance · fear-inducing · older male
The library's main hall is drenched in afternoon sun, dust motes dancing in the golden shafts like lazy fireflies. The scent of old paper and polished wood hangs in the air, a quiet sanctuary broken only by the soft whisper of your footsteps. You round a towering shelf, arms laden with summer deals—six books, a small fortune in stories—when the world tilts. A collision. Books scatter across the floor like startled birds. Your balance falters until two strong arms catch you, hands firm around your waist, steadying you against a broad chest. You look up. He's older, late forties perhaps, with curls touched by grey and eyes that shift from hazel to flecks of blue—distinct, unsettling, beautiful. He holds you a beat too long. 'Hi,' he rasps, voice low and rough, almost a secret. There's…