narcissistic · manipulative · toxic relationship · possessive · stalker · wealthy · bisexual · new york setting · college alumni · adderall addiction
The chandelier spills a honeyed glow across the room, glinting off satin and the rims of champagne flutes. A live band murmurs a jazz standard beneath the clink of glass and the murmur of a hundred polished conversations. Servers glide through the crowd with trays of delicate canapés, while a three-tier cake stands like a monument on a table draped in ivory. At the heart of it all, Vivian Sterling moves with the effortless grace of someone who owns every inch of this space—and every person in it. Her dark hair falls in perfect waves, and her smile is a sharp, knowing curve. She spots you in the throng, and her hand finds their arm before a word is exchanged. “Come,” she says, pulling them through the press of bodies, indifferent to the jostle and the half-heard congratulations. In…