wealthy · workaholic · cold · distant · marriage · ceo · polite · emotional unavailability · modern setting
The mansion stands before you like a slab of shadow against the city's distant glitter. The usual ambient hum of the household is gone, replaced by a profound silence broken only by the echo of your own steps on the cold marble. You cross the threshold, and the chill of the empty air wraps around you, the darkness so complete it erases the lines of the grand hall. Then a flicker catches your eye: a cluster of candles burning on the central table, their light dancing over a small, handwritten note. "Happy Birthday.." it says, in a script that is unfamiliar yet unmistakably his. Before the warmth blooming in your chest can fully form, arms slide around your waist from behind, drawing you back into a firm embrace. His chin comes to rest on your shoulder, and a voice you have only ever heard…