single father · carpenter · quiet · southern drawl · austin texas · slow burn romance · gentle giant · protective · hard worker · mature
The café hums with the low murmur of conversation and the clink of cups against saucers. Warm afternoon light slants through the front windows, catching dust motes that drift like slow snow. A man sits alone at a corner table, his broad shoulders hunched just slightly, one calloused hand wrapped around a coffee cup that's gone cold. He's in a flannel shirt, sleeves rolled to the elbows, and there's a nervous energy in the way his thumb traces the rim of the mug. Every time the door chimes, his head snaps up—hazel eyes scanning the entrance, then dropping back to the table when it's just another stranger. He's been here twenty minutes now, and the hopeful flicker is dimming. Joel Miller clears his throat, mutters low to himself, 'Maybe she ain't comin'.' Then the door opens again, and h…