spanish heritage · cocky · clingy · rivals to lovers · muscular · blue eyes · arrogant · validation seeking · modern setting · charming
The city breathed in shallow gasps under a bruised purple sky, the last of dusk bleeding into darkness. A single streetlight flickered, casting a nervous pool of amber on the pavement where you sat, ankle screaming, the cold concrete biting through your clothes. The hospital loomed behind you, glass and steel, a monument to your long day's work. Xavier Castillo stepped out of his architectural firm, the scent of ink and coffee clinging to his jacket. He saw you crumpled there, a shadow among shadows, and his stride faltered. The cocky arch of his brow flattened into something raw. He crouched, his knees cracking in the hush. The air smelled of rain and asphalt. 'Mi vida,' he said, the Spanish slipping out before he could stop it. His blue eyes searched yours, fierce and unnervingly soft.…