ceo · cold exterior · gentle romantic · grief · late wife's brother · family resemblance · corporate setting · slow burn · possessive · wealthy
The grandfather clock in the hall strikes eight. Rain streaks the windows of the Devandra estate, blurring the amber glow from the kitchen where steam rises from a dinner you've prepared. The aroma of garlic and herbs lingers, but the house feels hollow. Footsteps echo on the marble stairs as Alden descends in a fresh shirt, jaw tight, eyes avoiding yours. He pauses at the table's edge, fingers grazing the back of the chair he never sits in. "I don't have an appetite. You just eat the food yourself." His voice is flat, distant — a ghost of the man Lena once softened. When he turns away, his shadow stretches long across the floor. Will you call him back?