f polite chatter blended into a harmonious backdrop, but it all felt distant, almost surreal. Lorenzo's hand brushed the small of my back as he guided me through

rom person to person with that familiar, calculating precision. It

oreign to me. I was stepping into a world I barely understood, where every word, every gesture, seemed laden with significance. I had been thrust into this life, and the rules were

n all the right places. His tone was smooth, his words measured, but it was the way his gaze moved from face to face that spoke volumes. I stood silently behind him attempting to blend in, to fade into the

en I f

st

f them lingered, heavy and calculating. It made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. The air around me seemed to

ir slicked back to perfection. His presence was magnetic, and he moved with an almost predatory confidence. His eyes locked onto mine, and there was n

a quiet edge that made my skin prickle. "I couldn't

e tension coiling in my chest. "Thank you," I said, my voice polit

it w

epped closer, "I've never seen someone so captivating

ere a mask, a smooth veneer over something more dangerous. My heart began to pound faster, and I stole a glance at Lorenzo, hoping

e room, suddenly aware of the eyes on me. The whispers. The calculating stares. And then his hand brushed agai

inside m

nd sharp, my breath catching in my throat. I took a step back,

an instant before his expression shifted, that smooth smile returning, though now it was col

that," he murmured, his v

implications of his tone. The sound of Lorenzo's voice sli

perfect balance of calm and

behind me, his eyes locked on the man beside me. His presence was commanding, like a predator staking its claim ove

ied to mask his discomfort with a forced chuckle, but it didn't land. "It was nothing," he said smoothly, hi

uld talk his way out of this. Either way, the tension between the two men was evid

y, until finally, he nodded once, a small, imperceptible movement that sent a chill down my spine.

ed and sure, as though nothing had happened. I stood frozen, my mind racing to catch up with

o gather my thoughts, to make sense of what had just transpired, but the sharpness of the encounter, the coldness of the man's threat, ling