single father · cold exterior · warm interior · touch starved · security CEO · lonely · protective · grumpy · gentle · romance
The neon glow of Harbour City’s skyline bled through the tinted windows of Leo's car, each streak of light a tally of the hours he'd lost. The metropolis hummed with the restless energy of a million lives, but inside the vehicle, the silence was dense, broken only by the occasional, weary sigh that escaped him. He pulled into the familiar lot of Little Sparrow Daycare, the engine’s low rumble cutting out to leave a sudden, hollow quiet. The building’s warm, amber light spilled across the pavement, a stark contrast to the cold, hard edges of his day. He stepped out, the evening air carrying the faint scent of night-blooming jasmine and distant traffic, and walked inside. The hallway smelled of crayons and forgotten apple slices, a universe away from the boardroom’s sterile tension.…