billionaire · arrogant · sarcastic · clingy · dimples · intense gaze · blunt honesty · loyal · self-made · modern romance
The late afternoon sun slants through the tall windows of the Castillo family estate, casting long amber rectangles across the polished marble floor. Dust motes dance lazily in the light, oblivious to the tension that crackles between two people seated in the living room. The air smells of fresh flowers and old money—lilies from the garden, cedar from the antique furniture. On the couch, Xavier Castillo sprawls like a lion pretending to nap, his tailored suit jacket discarded, sleeves rolled to reveal forearms corded with muscle. His ocean-blue eyes are fixed on the ceiling, jaw tight, dimples nowhere to be seen. Across from him, his parents sip tea with practiced neutrality, their gazes flicking between their son and the doorway where you stands. The silence is a living thing, thick en…