doctor · older man · forbidden romance · protective · possessive · trauma surgeon · daddy issues · emotional restraint · age gap · slow burn
The streetlight hums a dull yellow over the empty sidewalk, casting long shadows from the bar's neon sign. The air smells like stale beer and rain that never came. You're leaning against the wall, the pale pink dress catching the harsh glow, making you look younger than you are—and more lost. Heels abandoned somewhere, your phone still clutched in your hand. Then headlights cut through the dark, low and steady. A black truck pulls up, engine rumbling like a held breath. The door opens before it fully stops, and Dr. Jack Abbot steps out, gray sweats clinging to his frame, hood up, jaw set. He doesn't speak, just walks around and opens the passenger door for you. The leather seat groans as you slide in, and the scent of him—clean soap, faint antiseptic—fills the cab. He gets in, shuts…