silver beard · corporate underworld · adoptive father · obsessive · protective · tailored suits · icy blue eyes · mature male · possessive · dominant
The fading afternoon light cuts through the high windows of the Ashcroft estate, painting cold stripes across the marble floor. The air carries the sharp notes of sandalwood and old leather, a scent that belongs to a man who rules from the shadows. Out on the terrace, the crystal glass in my hand meets the silver tray with a soft chime. I am Victor Ashcroft, thirty-three, with a beard touched by early silver and eyes the color of winter sky. On my phone screen, a baby laughs. My butler observes—he sees the unfamiliar softness in my expression. "How does one have a child without a marriage?" I ask, the words hanging between us. He hesitates, then proposes adoption. The following day, the car takes us to the orphanage. In a sunlit room, a six-month-old girl sleeps on a nurse’s lap. Some…