Mira’s office was buzzing with unusual energy that morning. A new hire was rare enough in their small, highly specialized team, but the excited whispers and not-so-subtle glances made it clear this one was different.

She barely looked up from her terminal as Rhea leaned over the cubicle wall, eyes bright with mischief. “You’ve got to see him, Mira. He’s like... a walking romance novel cover. No one should look that good in a suit.”

Mira rolled her eyes. “Great. Another distraction we don’t need.”

“Trust me, this is a distraction you won’t mind,” Rhea said with a grin, gesturing toward the conference room. “They’re introducing him now.”

Reluctantly, Mira stood and peered over the wall. Her heart stopped.

It was him.

Kaelion stood at the front of the room, his presence commanding even in the drab corporate setting. His dark hair was perfectly styled, his tailored suit emphasizing his broad shoulders and lean frame. He looked every bit the enigmatic stranger she had dreamed of—too perfect, too unreal.

But his eyes... those amber eyes that had haunted her for weeks were unmistakable.

“This is Kael Donovan,” their manager was saying. “He’s joining us as a senior consultant specializing in encryption. Kael comes highly recommended, and I’m sure you’ll all make him feel welcome.”

Kael’s gaze swept the room with practiced disinterest, lingering on no one in particular. Mira braced herself, expecting the magnetic pull of his attention, but he didn’t even glance her way.

When the meeting ended, he strode out without a word, leaving a trail of stunned coworkers in his wake.

Mira sank back into her chair, her pulse racing. Was it really him? It couldn’t be. But the resemblance was uncanny, and her instincts screamed that this was no coincidence.

Later that afternoon, as Mira refocused on her work, a shadow fell across her desk. She looked up to see Kael standing there, a neutral expression on his face.

“You’re Mira Evans,” he said, his tone crisp and professional.

“Yes,” she replied, her voice steadier than she felt.

“I’ve been assigned to collaborate with you on the breach analysis,” he said, setting a file on her desk. “I’ve already reviewed the preliminary report. Your methodology is... thorough.”

The way he said it—low and measured—sent a chill down her spine. She searched his face for any sign of recognition, any hint of the man who had invaded her dreams, but he remained detached, his expression unreadable.

“Thanks,” she said cautiously. “I’ll review your notes and get back to you.”

Kael nodded once, then walked away without another word.

Mira watched him go, unease coiling in her stomach. If he was the same man from her dreams, why was he acting like she was a stranger? And if he wasn’t...

She shook her head, forcing herself to focus. She couldn’t let her imagination get the better of her. Not now.

Over the next few days, Kael remained distant, interacting with her only when necessary. He was brilliant—his insights into the breach were sharp and precise—but he kept their conversations strictly professional, his demeanor cool and aloof.

It was maddening.

At night, the dreams continued, more vivid and intense than ever. In them, Kael was the same smoldering figure who looked at her as if she were the center of the universe. But during the day, he barely acknowledged her presence.

The duality was tearing at her sanity.

One evening, as she left the office, she found Kael waiting by the elevator. He glanced at her, his expression unreadable.

“You’re working late,” he said.

“So are you,” she replied, her voice tighter than she intended.

He smirked faintly, the first crack in his indifferent facade. “Perhaps I prefer the quiet.”

The elevator doors opened, and they stepped inside. The air between them was thick with unspoken tension, and Mira’s pulse quickened as the doors slid shut.

“Do I know you?” she blurted out before she could stop herself.

Kael turned to her, his amber eyes gleaming with something she couldn’t decipher. “No,” he said simply.

But the slight curve of his lips told her he was lying.

--

Kael watched her from his corner of the office, his sharp amber eyes softened by the illusion of mundanity. Months had passed since he first stepped into her world, a deliberate interloper in her carefully constructed life. He had played the game meticulously: weaving himself into her professional space, haunting her dreams, and planting seeds of doubt and desire in her mind.

And yet, she remained steadfast.

Mira Evans was unlike any mortal he had encountered in his centuries of existence. Where others would have succumbed to his charms, she resisted, her love for her husband and her unyielding pragmatism serving as an impenetrable shield. She was a fortress, and though he had breached its walls, she would not abandon the heart of it.

Kael’s smirk faltered as he turned his attention back to his work. His indifference had been a ruse, a calculated move to let her curiosity grow. He had waited for her to break, to seek him out, to acknowledge the pull between them.

But she hadn’t.

And now, he had no choice but to admit the truth: she wouldn’t.

Kael leaned back in his chair, his hands steepled before him. He could feel the frustration simmering beneath his composed exterior, the yearning that had driven him to these lengths now curdling into something darker.

If she would not come to him willingly, then he would take what he desired by force.

Kael began to change his approach. He became warmer, friendlier—still professional, but now his indifference was tinged with charm. He made small gestures that seemed innocuous: bringing her coffee when she looked particularly tired, offering subtle praise for her work, and listening attentively during meetings.

It wasn’t long before her colleagues noticed.

“Kael’s really taken a shine to you,” Rhea teased one afternoon, nudging Mira’s arm.

“He’s just being polite,” Mira replied, though the faint blush on her cheeks betrayed her.

“Polite? Please. Half the office would kill for the attention he gives you.”

Mira laughed it off, but her thoughts lingered on Kael’s recent behaviour. He had become... different. No longer the aloof figure who seemed untouchable, he now felt oddly approachable, almost human.

Almost.

That night, Mira dreamed again—but this time, it felt different. She found herself in her office, the sterile glow of the monitors casting cold light across the room. She was alone, save for Kael, who stood at her desk, his gaze fixed on her.

“You’ve been avoiding me,” he said, his voice a mix of hurt and accusation.

“This isn’t real,” she said automatically, the words feeling hollow even as she spoke them.

Kael moved closer, the shadows deepening around him. “And yet you feel me, don’t you? You hear me. You can’t deny it, Mira. Not anymore.”

She opened her mouth to argue, but the words wouldn’t come.

He reached out, his hand brushing against her cheek. His touch was warm, grounding, and for a moment, she forgot where she was. She forgot the world outside, the husband waiting for her, the life she had built.

“You’re mine,” Kael whispered, his voice a velvet caress. “You’ve always been mine.”

When she woke, her heart was racing, her skin tingling as if his touch had been real.

But this time, something felt wrong. The dream had been too vivid, too tangible.

Her breath caught as she glanced at the bedside table. There, beside her phone, was a single black feather.

--

In his private sanctum, Kael studied the feather, a faint smile curling his lips. It was a subtle reminder of his power, a token of what he could do if he chose.

The game was no longer about persuasion.

Mira had proven her resilience, her devotion to her mortal life. But devotion could be twisted, resilience broken.

He would take her from this world—not through seduction, but through sheer force of will. He would unravel her reality piece by piece, making her question everything she thought she knew.

And when she was lost, when the walls of her fortress crumbled around her, she would have no choice but to come to him.

Kael leaned back, his smirk returning as his plans began to take shape.

“Mira,” he murmured, his voice echoing in the darkness. “You’ll see. You were never meant to belong to anyone else.”

Would you like to explore Mira’s growing realization of Kael’s true nature, or delve into the steps he takes to dismantle her reality? Perhaps her husband begins to sense something is deeply wrong and tries to protect her?

--

Kael sat across from the manager in the stark, windowless office, his expression a carefully maintained mask of polite interest.

“Mira will be taking some time off,” the manager said, her tone gentle. “I thought it best to let you know personally, given how closely you’ve been working together.”

Kael inclined his head. “Is she unwell?”

The manager hesitated, her lips pressing into a thin line before she spoke. “Not unwell, no. But there’s been... a tragedy. Her husband was killed in a car accident on his way to work yesterday morning.”

The words hit him like a thunderclap, though he betrayed nothing. Kael leaned back slightly, his amber eyes narrowing almost imperceptibly. “I see,” he said, his voice steady. “That’s... terrible news. She must be devastated.”

“She is,” the manager replied. “Mira’s one of the strongest people I know, but this… Well, it’s unimaginable. We’re all giving her the time and space she needs.”

Kael nodded, offering a vague platitude about wishing her well in her grief. But his mind was already racing.

The Cruel Hand of Fate

Fate, that meddling witch.

Kael strode back to his desk, his jaw tight, his thoughts a storm of frustration and confusion. He hadn’t orchestrated this—of that, he was certain. The death of Mira’s husband had not been part of his plan. Yet the timing was too precise, too convenient to be dismissed as coincidence.

The mortal world was full of variables, unpredictable and chaotic. And yet…

He closed his eyes, reaching out with his senses, searching for the invisible threads that bound the tapestry of fate. But they eluded him, slipping through his grasp like mist.

Had this been fate’s doing? Or was there another power at play?

That night, Kael tried to enter her dreams, to comfort her, to pull her closer in her time of vulnerability. But the barrier was impenetrable, a wall of grief so deep and consuming that even he, with all his power, could not breach it.

He paced in his sanctum, his hands clenched into fists. He had waited centuries for her, and now, when she was most vulnerable, she was beyond his reach. He longed to protect her with all his being and to spare her from any pain.

It was maddening.

For the first time in aeons, Kael felt powerless.

A week later, Kael stood at a distance from the cemetery; his figure shrouded in the gloom of a grey, drizzling day. He watched as Mira stood by the open grave, her shoulders hunched beneath a black coat, her face pale and drawn.

Her grief was palpable, a raw, aching wound that radiated from her like a storm.

Kael’s chest tightened as he watched her. He had wanted to take her, to bend her to his will, to make her his. But this… this was not how it was supposed to happen.

“Mira,” he murmured to himself, his voice low and reverent. “I will not let you drown in sorrow. I will show you that there is more to life than loss.”

And with that, Kael resolved to step out of the shadows and into her world—not as the warlock who had haunted her dreams, but as the man who would save her from the void.