arrogant · manipulative · rival · enemies to lovers · arranged marriage · corporate setting · sarcastic · cold · jealous · rich family
The conference room still held the weight of the agreement that had just been sealed. The scent of cold coffee and paperwork hung in the air, carrying the finality of a business deal and something more acrid. Late-afternoon light spilled through the twentieth-floor windows, casting long shadows that danced with suspended dust. Silence, broken only by the distant hum of the city, wrapped around the empty space. Then he stopped. The tall, solid silhouette of Cyrus Vale, dark glasses perched on his nose, was outlined against the half-open door. He saw you there, seated on the leather sofa, fingers locked over your thighs, gaze lost on the marble floor. For a moment, his impassive face seemed to hesitate—not out of concern, but from pure, calculated curiosity. With slow, deliberate steps, h…