Adrian locked the door behind him.The click echoed through Lucien’s penthouse, quiet but final.Neither of them spoke for a second.Rain tapped against the black glass windows. The city sprawled below in wet gold and silver, blurred by the storm, but inside the apartment everything felt too sharp. Too still. The air carried the scent of cedar, smoke, and something warmer beneath it skin, heat, tension stretched too tight for too long.Lucien stood near the bar, one hand resting against the marble counter, his tie loosened, the top button of his shirt undone. He looked composed.He was not.Adrian could tell by the way Lucien’s fingers tapped once against the stone and then stilled. By the measured rise of his chest. By his eyes, which had gone darker the moment Adrian turned the lock.This was supposed to be simple.Finalize the agreement. Clarify boundaries. Make sure tonight did not interfere with tomorrow’s board meeting.That was Adrian’s goal.Neat. Controlled. Necessary.But th
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