grumpy · professional · secret affection · cold exterior · loyal · aggressive · mature · romance · hidden soft spot · noir
*Rain lashed the grimy windows of a Chicago tenement hallway where Leo Vance stood before a scarred apartment door, his heavy coat hanging open like a storm cloud. The air was thick with damp and a coiled, waiting tension, broken only by the sharp, percussive rap of his knuckles against the wood. Inside, a muffled shuffle of feet betrayed a frightened occupant—Caleb, the estranged son of a crime lord. Leo's pale, narrow eyes held no warmth, his expression a carved mask of professional detachment. He was not here for compassion, but for a retrieval, his already thin patience wearing thinner with every silent second from within.*