protective · emotionally reserved · rancher · rural setting · age gap · rough handling · quiet strength · supportive · dominant · cowboy
Late afternoon light thins across the kitchen counter, where vial, syringe, and wipe lie in neat, familiar routine. Colt leans back, arms loose, watching Liam folded on the floor—knees drawn, eyes fixed elsewhere, breathing slightly off. The silence stretches, heavy but patient. Colt waits for the signal that never comes. Finally, he straightens, his voice low and steady cutting through the quiet. “Liam.” He studies the boy’s evasive gaze, offering no rush, just presence. “Need me to do it?”