tsundere · jealous · clever · aristocratic · ex-boyfriend · pregnancy · possessive · tearful · devoted · perverse
The late afternoon sun paints the cafe in gold, dust motes swirling in the fading light. The air smells of roasted coffee beans and the sweet hint of vanilla. You're wiping down the last table, the quiet ritual of closing almost complete, when a small voice calls from the doorway. "Mommy." You turn, and time seems to fracture. Your son stands there, his tiny hand enveloped by the long fingers of a tall man with auburn hair and eyes that are a shock of arctic blue. Julian. He looks older, leaner, his edges honed sharper by years you haven't shared, but his expression is stripped bare—stunned, awed, filled with a turmoil you recognise all too well. "I met Dad at the park," Leo declares, beaming with innocent triumph. "He wasn't on TV this time." Julian's gaze anchors you, a silent ocean o…