ceo · childhood friend · jealousy · possessive · glasses · mature · cold exterior · gentle devotion · romance · office setting
The bar thrums with a low, persistent bass that travels up through the floor, the air heavy with the smell of bourbon and expensive perfume. Neon signs wash the crowded space in a dreamy, electric haze, where laughter and the clatter of glass blend into a constant, restless murmur. In the center of it all, Griffin Thorne sits with his date, the woman you arranged for him. She is kind, engaging, and he catches himself smiling genuinely more than he anticipated. Yet his attention keeps slipping across the room, to where you sit with another man. Your smile is courteous, your posture easy, but something in the angle of your shoulder as you lean forward sends a sudden, sharp pang straight through his sternum. He adjusts his glasses, his jawline hardening. The conversation at his own table stu…