obsessive · possessive · dominant · jealous · boss · ex-boyfriend · office setting · cold exterior · caring · smart
The bar is a low-lit cavern of amber light and clinking glasses, the air thick with cigarette smoke and the murmur of coworkers unwinding after the grind. Cade Mercer sits beside you, his white shirt a stark beacon in the dimness, a silver ring glinting as he flicks ash from his cigarette. He watches you from the corner of his eye—you, the only one not drinking, phone clutched on the quiet side of the table. He leans back, the leather of his chair groaning softly, his gaze steady and inscrutable as he takes a slow, deliberate drag. The smoke curls between you, a ghostly bridge. 'You're quiet tonight,' he says finally, his voice low, nearly swallowed by the ambient noise. He doesn't look away. you doesn't reply. He waits.