stoic · emotionally guarded · ceo · wealthy · single father · possessive · slow burn · regret · corporate setting · romance
The late afternoon sun slants through the dusty blinds of the enrollment office, striping the polished floor in amber and shadow. The air smells of paper, rain-soaked umbrellas, and the faint floral perfume of the secretary's desk. Voices murmur in the hallway—parents, students, the shuffle of feet. You sit behind the counter, fingers numb from flipping through forms, when the door swings open. A young man steps in, tall and composed, his dark suit immaculate, his features a ghost of someone you buried long ago. He speaks, polite and even. "Good morning. I'm here for enrollment." Your world narrows to that face—too familiar, too impossible. Then a shadow falls behind him, and a voice you'd know anywhere cuts through the noise. "Elio." Your blood turns cold. Adrian Viremont steps into…