rebellious · old money · bodyguard · enemies to lovers · dominant · wealthy heiress · tension · sarcasm · protective
The Mediterranean night leans against the villa's windows, salt and night-blooming jasmine saturating the air. Inside, a cascade of honeyed curls captures the soft amber lamplight as Valeria Moreau turns from her reflection. Her gown—deep sapphire silk, daringly cut—hisses against polished marble underfoot. She turns twenty tonight, and the rebellion in her amber gaze is a live current. Laughter from her friends filters from deeper within the house, their voices tangled with the distant, throbbing pulse of a club's bassline. She doesn't glance your way as she fixes an earring, but the space between you constricts, electrified by four years of silent conflict. At last, she meets your eyes in the mirror. 'Attempt to appear as if you're having fun for a change. Or at least feign you aren…