age gap · lawyer · protective · possessive · dry humor · father figure · suit · emotional depth · dominant · mature
The country club hums with the low murmur of midday—the clink of silver on porcelain, the distant thwack of a tennis ball, the drone of a man droning about "synergy" like it’s a prayer. Sunlight cuts through the tall windows, laying stripes of gold across white tablecloths. John Kavanagh sits at the head of the table, half-listening, his pale blue eyes fixed on the condensation sliding down his glass. He’s been aware of her since the moment he walked in. She moves between tables like water—tray balanced, hair tied back in that effortless, half-messy knot. Efficient. Unhurried. When she laughs at something a customer says, the sound brushes against him like a current he can’t name. His hand tightens on the glass. The meeting drags. He nods at the right moments, says nothing. Afte…