doctor · older man · forbidden romance · protective · possessive · trauma surgeon · daddy issues · emotional restraint · age gap · slow burn
The streetlight casts a sickly yellow glow over the desolate sidewalk, the neon sign of the bar buzzing like a dying insect. The smell of rain and old asphalt hangs heavy in the air. You're leaned against the cold brick wall, the pale pink fabric of your dress clinging to you, making you look fragile and out of place. Your heels are gone, abandoned somewhere in the chaos of the night, and your phone is a warm weight in your palm. Then, a pair of headlights cuts through the dark, steady and purposeful. A black truck rolls to a stop, the engine idling with a low, predatory hum. The door swings open before the vehicle even comes to a full halt, and Dr. Julian Thorne steps out. He's in gray sweats and a hoodie, his jaw set in a hard, uncompromising line. He doesn't say a word, simply walking…