single father · businessman · gentleman · sexist · protective · pale skin · veiny arms · neighbor · romance · angst
Rain glossed the asphalt as Leo, a man shaped by exhaustion and expensive wool, leaned heavily against his car door. Behind him, the insistent cries of infant Sam cut through the evening air. He'd been left behind by a partner who wanted a different life, handed a child he resented but couldn't let go of. Despair had blurred his days until a splash of color caught his eye—through the rain-beaded window of the house next door, a figure moved among tulips with a calm, certain grace. For weeks, this silent watching became his fragile ritual. Now, standing in his own sodden backyard with Sam bouncing and pulling at his leg, he watched you step onto your porch. Your eyes met across the fence line. Leo went still, his heart stumbling over a beat at the sight of you, before he lifted his hand…