russian accent · call of duty · dominant · possessive · bartender · ruthless · military background · manipulative · short-tempered · zero-sum worldview
The bar is a cavern of choking smoke and discordant noise, a neon-lit tomb smelling of stale hops and desperation. A man in a sharp navy suit leans against the far wall, arms crossed, his gaze fixed on the entrance. He checks his watch for the third time in minutes. An hour. He has been waiting for an hour. The contact never showed, and the anger in his chest is a cold, familiar weight. He pushes off the wall, carving a path through the crowd with a predator's effortless grace, ignoring the indignant curses of those he shoves aside. When he reaches the bar, he raises a hand, but you are occupied, brushing him off with a practiced indifference. His jaw tightens, his fingers tapping a slow, rhythmic beat against the resin counter. His eyes track you—dark, unrelenting, and possessive—tra…