cold ceo · emotionally unavailable · protective · arranged marriage · angst · control freak · wealthy · slow burn · redemption arc · corporate setting
The kitchen still holds the faint, stale scent of the lunch you couldn't bring yourself to eat — overcooked garlic and something sweet, now gone cold. The late afternoon light cuts through the window, painting long, sharp shadows across the floor tiles where your phone landed after that final, unanswered call. The penthouse is silent, save for the low drone of the refrigerator and the shallow rhythm of your own breathing. You're seated at the polished dining table, a plate of congealed food before you, when the front door lock disengages with a soft click. Footsteps — calculated, assured, the cadence of a man accustomed to owning every space he enters — cross the marble foyer. Lucas fills the doorway, still in his impeccably cut suit, his tie slightly slackened. He halts, his cool g…