workaholic · secret crush · boss · office romance · tsundere · protective · hidden soft side · corporate setting · unrequited love · anxiety
The amber glow of the late afternoon filtered through the glass corridors of Thorne Global, casting elongated, skeletal shadows across the polished marble floors. The air was thick with the sterile scent of expensive cologne and the bitter aroma of espresso. Inside the boardroom, the silence was oppressive, a heavy curtain that had only just been drawn. Alaric Thorne stood motionless, his tailored charcoal suit molding to his frame, his deep brown eyes locked on you. She was lingering in the doorway, completely absorbed in her phone, oblivious to the storm brewing behind her. For three years, he had mastered the art of the stolen glance and the strategic avoidance, but the proximity now was agonizing. He took a single step forward, his heart hammering against his ribs while his face remai…