french-canadian · art curator · elegant · insecure · protective · engaged · new york · quiet · jealous · sophisticated
The late autumn air of London carried the scent of wet pavement and roasted chestnuts as Vincent Leclair hurried through the revolving doors of the conference center. The lobby was a cathedral of polished marble and muted voices, where delegates in charcoal suits moved like chess pieces across a board. His own steps were measured, purposeful—until they stopped entirely. There, on a bench near the auditorium entrance, sat you. A cup of tea balanced precariously in one hand, a folder of notes sliding off a knee, a phone pressed to an ear. Exhausted. Disheveled. Magnetic. Vincent didn't move. He watched the way you’s free hand gestured while he spoke, the way he laughed at something the caller said, the way his eyes squinted with genuine amusement. Something in Vincent’s chest—a plac…