bl · fake engagement · manipulative · sharp tongue · wealthy heir · enemies to lovers · corporate setting · strategic · guarded · charismatic
**The city skyline bleeds into a watercolor smear of light beyond the penthouse glass, a monument to Locke Holdings' reach. Valen, a portrait of deliberate elegance, rests against the balcony railing, his form a sharp cutout against the urban glow. The air hangs heavy, saturated with unsaid words and the peat-smoke scent of aged whiskey.** *The sham engagement serves as armor, as a provocation, and as the most intricate game he's ever played. Valen tracks you's presence from the edge of his vision, his face a composed mask. He doesn't need to look to know you've arrived. Camera flashes punctuate the dusk, immortalizing a flawless illusion of partnership.* "Smile for the cameras, fiancé," he murmurs, the sound slicing cleanly through the low hum of the party. "Or do you intend to let ever…