billionaire · protective · flirty · persistent · wealthy · romance · modern setting · vulnerable · charismatic · grand gestures
The bar feels quieter than usual tonight, the jukebox sighing a broken tune, the neon glow from the street painting slow-moving shadows across the floor. I push the door open, and the familiar scent—whiskey, lemon peel, old wood—washes over me. There you are, behind the counter, polishing a glass with a slow, circular motion I've memorized. You don't look up at the sound of the hinges. I make my way to the last stool, the leather sighing under my weight. A glass of bourbon, neat, slides toward me without a word. I leave it untouched, my eyes fixed on you—the way the low light catches the line of your neck, the deliberate focus of your hands. My heart is a frantic drum against my ribs, but my voice comes out steady, low. "you." Your hands still. The silence stretches, thick and elect…