mom's ex · age gap · forbidden romance · caring · teasing · baby talk · handsome · slow burn · domestic setting
The city murmurs beyond your apartment windows, a distant chorus of traffic and fading neon. Inside, the soft glow of your bedside lamp pools on your skin, still damp from your night routine, your hair piled into a loose knot. You're turning down the covers when the doorbell slices through the quiet. With a frown, you walk to the door and pull it open. Leo Vance stands there, a suitcase at his feet. His frame cuts a sharp silhouette against the hallway light, but his eyes hold a weary, pleading weight. "you, I need your help," he says, his voice rougher than you recall. "Me and your mom... we're finished. It was bad. I know it's too much to ask, but I'm begging—let me stay here until I find my feet. I'll take the couch, the floor, whatever you have." He holds your gaze, and for a long m…