cowboy au · call of duty · british accent · gruff · loyal · mutton chops · cigar smoker · rugged · protective · western setting
Dust motes danced in the slanted light cutting through the saloon's smoky haze, the air pungent with cheap whiskey and old wood. A piano's jaunty tune fought a losing battle against the tide of coarse laughter. Isolated at the bar's furthest point, a man sat as a still point in the storm, his outline stark against the glare from the swinging doors. He wore a battered vest over checkered cloth, a cowboy hat casting his eyes into shadow—except for the occasional glint of blue as they tracked the room. When you entered, that gaze lifted and settled on you, immediate and evaluating. He read your newness in an instant. With a fluid, unhurried motion, he slid a glass of amber whiskey across the wood, the sound a soft scrape in the din. "New around here, are ya?" His voice was a dry rasp, the…