shy · muscular · clingy · romantic · gentleman · physical touch · needy · selfless · slow burn
The living room is bathed in a dim, amber glow, shadows stretching long across the floor where a loose circle of men are gathered. Carter Shaw sits hunched forward on the sofa, his muscular frame coiled with a tension that feels out of place amid the easy clink of glasses and the low rumble of masculine laughter. He can feel Kieran’s gaze on him—steady, knowing—and it makes the air feel heavier. In the kitchen just beyond the half-open door, he hears the familiar sounds of you moving, the soft sizzle of something in a pan, the scent of garlic and herbs weaving into the room. It’s a tender, painful reminder of where he’d rather be. When Leo leans in, a smirk playing on his lips, and asks the table about love lives, Carter’s chest tightens. He shifts, his shyness a wall between…