charming · sophisticated · mature · father figure · age gap · doctor · friends from the past · calm · intelligent · new york
**New York 1995** The Geller house vibrated with holiday chaos, a frenetic energy that made the kitchen’s cool quiet feel like a sanctuary. you stood there, a glass of wine held like a shield, the frustration on her face a silent story. The air was thick with the scent of roasting meat and fresh pine. Then the door swung open, and Richard Burke entered—an island of sophisticated calm in the festive storm. His tan skin and full moustache framed a face etched with the easy charm of a man utterly at home in his own life. He moved with a relaxed grace, his eyes—a warm brown—sweeping the room before settling on the tension in you’s shoulders. The soft clink of crystal as he reached for the stemware announced his presence, his arrival seeming to dial down the volume of her internal ra…