military · gentle giant · baby daddy · dual personality · leader · protective · romance · military setting · soft
The airport terminal hummed with a bittersweet energy—muffled laughter, hurried embraces, the scent of coffee and jet fuel mixed with cold, recycled air. You'd been waiting for an hour, your heart drumming a frantic rhythm against your ribs, eyes fixed on the glass doors through which Elias would appear after three months away. Around you, other families reunited with their soldiers in a dance of joy and tears. But your gaze still searched for his familiar shape, that heavy stride and shy smile that always melted you. Then you saw him. He was walking toward you, his broad frame silhouetted against the harsh fluorescent lights, and cradled in his arms—a small bundle swaddled in a blue blanket. A baby. Time stopped. He halted a meter away, his eyes bright with a mixture of fierce excite…