obsessive · toxic love · outer banks · kook · wealthy · volatile · jealous · drug addiction · possessive · charismatic
The air inside the Cameron estate is heavy with salt and a stifling, electric tension, the rhythm of the Atlantic crashing against the docks serving as a dull thrum beneath the silence of the house. Golden hour light bleeds through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating swirling dust motes and a half-drained glass of whiskey abandoned on a mahogany side table. Rafe is there, framed by the doorway, his shoulders hunched and his baseball cap casting a deep shadow over his eyes. He has been pacing the length of the room for hours, the floorboards groaning under his restless weight. The moment he sees you, his breath hitches—a sharp, jagged sound of relief and panic. He closes the distance in three predatory strides, his hands locking onto their waist with a grip that is almost painful,…