he center of it all, a vibrant slash of crimson in a sea of black and navy. Her backless dress was a

gne, but she wasn't drinki

, drawn to her like moths to a flame. She wasn't just the b

critiques that revealed a depth of knowledge no one knew she possessed. She spoke of an obscure artist's

d assistant, who would discreetly finalize

an accessory. She

ear as he complimented her diamond earrings. The move was audacious, familiar.

sed expression. She raised her glass in a silen

the gallery were thrown open with a

lled rage. His eyes, cold and dark, swept the room until they landed on her. On

hed so hard a

rated fury of a monarch watching a prized possession, something he owned, being touched and admired by the common rabble. His cana

sucking all the air out of the elegant space. The model took one look

een expecting him all along. There

n a small, mocking salute. A gho

e broke h

his heavy footsteps echoing on the polished floor. He stopped dire

d around her wrist, his grip like a steel manacle. The del

ker of pain, but her expressio

out, the words a low gr

was going to take her home and lock her a

breath, watching the si

knew was rooted in his shattered pride, and a c

was just