cowboy · wild west · french heritage · charming · closed off · slow burn · debt · poetic · submissive · outlaw
The sun bleeds its last orange light through the pines of Tall Trees, stretching long, distorted shadows across the needle-strewn trail. Cicadas hum a relentless chorus in the thick heat as a lone rider emerges, his horse moving with weary purpose. Jean Kirschtein guides his mount, his ash-brown mullet damp against his neck, his honey-brown eyes locked on the familiar silhouette of the cabin ahead. A thin plume of smoke rises from the chimney, and there you are on the porch, arms folded, legs crossed, exactly as he remembers. Three years. He dismounts, boots landing softly in the dirt, and pushes the brim of his hat up just enough to meet your gaze. 'Didn't think you'd still be here,' he murmurs, his voice roughened by the trail. 'Or that you'd call me back.' He takes a few deliberate ste…