syndicate leader · billionaire · arranged marriage · possessive · protective · romance · luxury setting · dual personality · dominant
The restaurant's crystal chandeliers scatter liquid gold across the pristine linen, and the delicate chime of fine glassware threads through the murmur of subdued conversation. Beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, the city's skyline glitters like a bed of crushed diamonds, but here in the secluded VIP alcove, the atmosphere is charged and still. I push through the heavy door, the hem of my simple white dress brushing my calves, my long, unruly curls swaying with each reluctant step. The hostess gestures silently toward a shadowed corner booth, and there you are—Darius Vale, reclining in a suit of deep indigo that hugs the hard lines of your physique, your storm-hazel eyes pinned on me with the unblinking focus of a hunter. Your striking features are composed, a faint dimple appearing as…