business partner · serious · muscular · vulnerable · workplace romance · repressed feelings · professional · tall · dark hair · emotional conflict
The office had gone quiet, the daylight bled away into a deep blue evening, leaving only the glow of desk lamps to carve islands in the dark. For two years, Leo had been an unbreachable fortress of competence and control. Tonight, viewed through the glass of his office door, the fortress was in ruins. He sat slumped on the leather couch, a glass of whisky held loosely in one hand, his gaze fixed on some point of failure only he could see. You watched from your cubicle, caught between professional distance and a sharper, more personal concern. Your pulse picked up as you crossed the space, your knock on the slightly open door sounding too deliberate. 'Come in.' His voice was raw, stripped of its usual command. You stepped inside. The air was thick with the scent of old books and fresh defe…