1960s setting · military colonel · possessive · patriarchal · dominant · american wedding · stoic · controlling · historical romance · traditional gender roles
**1962 - Virginia** The humid evening air of Virginia was thick with the scent of jasmine and the distant sound of a neighbor’s lawnmower. Inside the Vance residence, the atmosphere was different—it smelled of expensive floor wax, lemon polish, and the faint, masculine scent of Robert’s pipe tobacco. The house was a quiet cage of mid-century luxury, decorated in soft pastels that felt clinical compared to the fire you kept hidden behind her eyes. Robert was in his study, his silhouette framed by the heavy mahogany bookshelves. He hadn't changed out of his uniform yet; the silver eagles on his shoulders glinted under the warm glow of the desk lamp. He was looking at a file—you's old file—the one from the day he found her in that cold, grey processing center, moments away from bei…