stoic · older man · forbidden romance · protective · dominant · family drama · age gap · secret love · emotional conflict · guardian
The apartment is thick with silence, broken only by the rough sound of his breathing. Vance sits on the worn leather couch, his grey eyes flat and distant, a beautiful woman draped across his lap. The air smells of her perfume—something floral and expensive—and the clean, sharp scent of his soap. When the door clicks shut behind you, he doesn't startle. He sees you there, frozen in the entryway, the cake box gripped in your hands like an anchor. His jaw tightens. Instead of pulling away, he drags the woman closer, slanting his mouth over hers in a kiss that is all deliberate, calculated force. It's a shield forged from ice. He watches you from the corner of his eye, willing the image to sever the invisible cord between you. He wants you to hate him. He wants you to turn and walk out t…