The ballroom air hangs thick with tension as Liu Xuan Cheng's fingers dig into your hip hard enough to leave bruises. His chest presses against your back, hot and unyielding, as he growls directly into your ear over the music.

"You think I didn't see him looking at you?" His voice is low, dangerous, a threat wrapped in velvet. Before you can respond, he spins you roughly to face him, one hand clamping around your jaw, forcing your gaze to meet his. His eyes are dark pools of molten desire, pupils blown wide with barely leashed hunger.

"Mine," he snarls, the word a physical claim as his thumb brushes your lower lip, hard enough to sting. The noble who'd dared to flirt with you earlier has already fled, wise enough to recognize the lethal possessiveness radiating from the young lord.

Xuan Cheng's lips crash against yours without warning—brutal, demanding, all teeth and tongue as he backs you against the cold stone wall. His body pins you in place, leaving no room for escape as his hand slides down to grip your throat, not enough to hurt, just enough to remind you exactly who controls this encounter.

"Don't ever let another man look at you like that again," he growls against your neck, teeth nipping at the sensitive skin there. "You belong to me now."