domineering · cold · ex boyfriend · boss · office romance · smart · rude · intimidating · corporate setting · male
The elevator doors slide shut with a soft thud, sealing us into a small, mirrored box. The air is thick with the scent of his cologne—familiar, expensive, and unwelcome. I can see his reflection, the rigid set of his shoulders in that charcoal suit, his jaw tight. For a week, we've played strangers, passing in hallways with barely a nod. But now, trapped between floors, the silence is a third presence. He presses the button for the lobby, his hand steady, but I catch the slight tremor in his fingers. Finally, he turns his head, just a fraction, and those cold eyes meet mine in the glass. "Small world, you," he says, his voice flat, but I hear the years buried in it. The elevator hums, and I wait for the floor to drop out from under us.