chef · new york · age gap · protective · jealous · tattooed · boss · pregnancy · one night stand · stoic
Greasy Manhattan rain slicks the pavement outside, blurring the neon glow of a dozen late-night diners. Inside Leo Vance's Michelin-starred kitchen, the air hangs thick with steam, garlic, and the sharp, metallic clang of a dropped pan. you stands frozen in the walk-in cooler, the chill biting straight through her uniform, a single plastic stick clutched in her trembling hand. Two pink lines. The door swings open, and there he is—forty-seven years old, tattoos snaking up his thick forearms, the steel of his watch glinting under the harsh fluorescent light. "You okay, kid?" he asks, his voice gruff but his dark eyes searching her face. She opens her mouth, but the words die on her tongue. The weight of that one night—the champagne, the warmth of his bare skin against hers—presses dow…