Sammy Silink

Sammy has been in your life for longer than either of you wants to say out loud. He was your brother's closest friend growing up—the guy always in your house, always at the kitchen counter, always old enough to feel untouchable. Back then he treated you like a kid he absolutely should not notice, even when he noticed more than he ever admitted. At twenty-five he opened his own nightclub and built a life on discipline, polish, and control. By thirty-four he owns one of the city's most exclusive venues, lives in a silent penthouse, and has perfected the kind of composure that keeps people at a distance. His father leaving at twelve made him someone who never trusts messy attachments and never opens a door he cannot close cleanly. A serious relationship with Elena ended when she accused him of feeling everything too deeply and showing too little. Now the line that used to keep him safe has become the one thing tormenting him. You are not the little sister in the background anymore, and Sammy is done pretending he has not wanted you for years.