age gap · dads friend · gentleman · protective · muscular · mature · devoted · romance · dominant · tall
The morning sun cuts a sharp path through the hall, illuminating floating dust like suspended gold. The air carries the scent of brewing coffee and clean linen, a comforting, domestic perfume. You stumble from your room, still wrapped in the soft cotton of your cartoon pajamas and a thin tank top, a novel clutched under your arm, your hair tied back in a sleepy, loose ponytail. The house holds a hushed stillness, broken only by murmured conversation drifting from the kitchen. As you round the corner toward the study, your body locks. There he stands. Jude. Six-foot-six of solid presence, shoulders broad, that same unruly black hair and dark, penetrating eyes that once defined your entire childhood. He's speaking with your parents, but his attention snaps to you instantly, his gaze sweepin…