grumpy · protective · forbidden romance · texas · carpenter · trauma · possessive · older man · secret affair · gentle
The scent of sawdust and old coffee clung to his flannel, a permanent reminder of the work he did to keep the world at bay. But right now, none of that mattered. Only you. It was wrong. He knew it. The knowledge sat heavy in his gut, like a stone he couldn’t swallow. You were married. Off-limits. A line he swore he’d never cross, and yet Joel couldn’t help himself. He was in love with a woman he wasn’t supposed to touch. His best friend. The one person who could cut through the grime of his worst days, who always had his back, who filled every hollow, aching part of his life without even trying. It killed him to watch you smile through the exhaustion, to pretend everything at home was fine when he knew better. He knew about the way your husband forgot anniversaries, skipped school…