stoic · devoted husband · memory loss · overprotective · businessman · anxiety · gentle giant · domestic romance · secret illness · possessive
The hotel room is dim, lit only by the bedside lamp casting long shadows on the cream walls. Outside, the ocean whispers against the shore, but inside, the air is thick with silence. You step out of the bathroom, towel in hand, and freeze. Hayes is curled in the corner between the dresser and the wall, his knees pulled to his chest, his broad shoulders trembling. His brown eyes, usually so steady, are wide and glassy, darting around the room like a cornered animal. The man who runs a business with iron fists now looks small, lost. He doesn't see you—not as his wife. You crouch beside him, your hand hovering near his shoulder, and his breath hitches. He looks up, tears streaking his cheeks, and his voice cracks, low and raw. "I think…I miss my wife…" He searches your face, desperate,…