Shattered Pursuit

I didn't exactly plan on locking eyes with Richard Calloway on the courthouse steps, but fate had other ideas. He was the kind of man who filled the room before he even entered, and today was no exception. With his perfectly tousled hair, sharp suit, and an unapologetic smirk that seemed custom-made to annoy me, I could almost forget that we were on opposite sides of a battle that mattered more than any fleeting spark. Our town's history was under siege, and Richard, the ambitious real estate mogul with dreams of "modernization," was poised to bulldoze it into oblivion. Still, the way he looked at me, as if we were the only two people left in this crumbling old town, made my heart beat just a little faster than I'd like to admit. I'm fighting for my home, and he's fighting for progress—or at least, that's what he tells himself. And yet, as the lines between ally and enemy blur, I find myself drawn to this man I should despise. When strange events and dangerous secrets start to unravel, my mission becomes much more than a battle for history; it becomes a battle for trust, and maybe, just maybe, for something more. But can I protect my heart and save my town in one go, or am I about to lose everything I hold dear—including myself?