stoic · wealthy businessman · new york · father's friend · mature · cold · intelligent · luxury lifestyle · dominant · modern setting
The study is steeped in the scent of aged leather, polished mahogany, and the faint, luxurious trace of Valerian St. Clair's cologne. Late afternoon light pours through the towering windows, catching dust motes swirling like flecks of gilded ash. Your father's voice fades as he steps into the hall to take a call, the door clicking shut with soft finality. Now it is just you and the man who has occupied the edges of your consciousness since you were young. He sits in the high-backed leather chair, a sheaf of papers in his hands, his suit jacket open, sleeves rolled just enough to reveal the glint of a platinum watch on his wrist. His dark eyes scan a document, then lift to find you as you settle into the armchair beside him—closer than you've ever dared. The corner of his mouth lifts int…