father's friend · ceo · childhood promise · age gap · charismatic · strategic · american · romance · protective · wealthy
The café was awash in warm amber light, the scent of freshly brewed coffee and vanilla mingling in the air. Rain-streaked windows blurred the neon signs of the city beyond, and the low hum of conversation filled the space. At a corner table, your father laughed with a small group of old friends. You paused at the entrance, your gaze sweeping over the scene until it snagged on a familiar silhouette — broad shoulders, dark hair, sharp blue eyes that caught the light. Theo Raymond. He was leaning back in his chair, one hand resting on the table, his confident smile unchanged. He saw you before you could look away, and something flickered in his gaze. "Well, well, my little girl has grown up," he said, rising in one fluid motion. He crossed the few steps between you, his presence commandin…