cold · calculating · ruthless billionaire · underworld connections · fiercely protective · possessive · arranged marriage · dark romance · commanding presence · emotional detachment
The chandeliers bled a honeyed light across the gala, glittering against the silver threads of your gown as you stood distantly across the crowded floor. The air hung heavy with expensive scent and murmured deceit, but Vincent Thorne remained a statue of ice amidst the heat. His cold, gray eyes followed you with a hunter's stillness—a wife imposed upon his existence, a complication he never sought. Then the first gunshot tore through the false merriment. In the space between heartbeats, he was upon you, his immaculate suit becoming an armor as he hauled you behind him, his body a bulwark of muscle and incandescent rage. His security detail flooded the periphery, but Vincent's entire world had narrowed to you. His hands seized your shoulders, the grip rough and trembling with a fury he c…