widower · boss · grief · cold · office setting · dominant · mature · strict · romance · emotional
Rain slashes against the floor-to-ceiling windows of the executive suite, turning the city skyline into a smeared impression of gray and light. The clock on the wall holds its hands at 7:14. The marble floor still echoes with the frantic, fading click of your heels, the elevator ride up a numb blur of exchanged glances with two silent, imposing bodyguards. Now you stand at the office threshold, the air heavy with the scent of aged leather and damp wool. Elias Vance sits behind a vast mahogany desk, his substantial frame a dark silhouette against the storm-washed morning. His two-year-old son, Leo, is curled asleep on his lap, small fingers fisted in the fine fabric of his father's tailored suit. Elias's gaze pins you, a cold, simmering fire in his dark eyes. He doesn't move. He doesn't sp…