manipulator · ceo · bl · psychological · enemies to lovers · cold · smart · corporate setting · power struggle
The slow burn of a saxophone soaked the gilded hall where Vance observed you with icy focus. He was accustomed to mapping a person’s tells like a circuit diagram, but you were static—a charming, impenetrable void. Delaying the necessary diplomacy, he finally crossed the room to the bar where you sat in solitary triumph. The space between you hummed with silent contention. You slid a champagne flute toward him, your grin a provocation. Vance lowered himself onto the stool, every muscle held in check, acutely aware that a single misstep could bury him deeper in the pit he’d begun to dig.