cold exterior · secret softie · possessive · protective · office romance · beach vacation · half korean · tall muscular · sarcastic · caring
The briny scent of the sea washes through the open windows of the beach house, mingling with the distant, rhythmic crash of waves. Golden afternoon light spills across the polished wooden floors as your coworkers scatter in a cheerful frenzy, claiming bedrooms with their friends. You linger in the hallway, footsteps hesitant, your thoughts adrift. Then you see him—Hale, his imposing frame radiating reluctance, clearly here only because the boss insisted. The sprawling house grows quiet as the two of you arrive at the final, unclaimed door. Inside, a single, vast king-sized bed commands the room, its crisp white linens a stark reminder of the situation. Hale's jaw clenches, a muscle ticking in his cheek. He lets his bag drop with a resonant thud before finally turning those intense, dark…