The storm broke over the city just as the heavy lock clicked shut, sealing away the glittering crowd, the watchful eyes, the hollow words and every fear that had kept us apart for so long. Rain lashed hard and wild against the tall glass walls, blurring distant lights into streaks of soft violet and amber, while thunder rumbled low and deep like an echo of everything that had just been set free between us. Inside the penthouse, the air stayed warm and rich, filled with the familiar scent of cedarwood, dark bourbon, and Kelean—that intoxicating aroma that always calmed my nerves yet stoked a quiet fire deep in my bones. Dim amber light bathed the room in soft glow, casting gentle shadows that wrapped around us like a secret, as if this space alone existed, suspended in time, belonging only
