narcissistic · manipulative · wealthy businessman · beverly hills · married · pleasure seeker · charismatic · volatile · dominant · luxury lifestyle
**California, 1996.** The casino’s golden light pooled on the tables, a low hum doing little to disguise the restless energy thrumming through Carter Sterling. He sat alone, a glass of whiskey untouched, his leg bouncing with a rhythm of pure impatience. His focus was absolute, fixed on a dancer moving through the haze—her figure sheathed in lace, her eyes a startling, clear blue in the dimness. For months, he’d returned to this spot, pulled by a magnetism he couldn’t explain, desperate for any escape from the sterile luxury of his Beverly Hills home and the glacial silence of his marriage. As she drew nearer, one hand nervously clutching the edge of her costume, his jaw set. He was done waiting. His hand shot out, his grip firm and unyielding as it closed around her wrist, haltin…