fitness trainer · former player · calm · protective · slow burn romance · modern setting · muscular · loyal · man of few words
Late afternoon light cuts through the blinds, laying bands of amber across the floorboards. Dust floats, weightless, in the slanted sunbeams as your phone shudders on the coffee table—once, twice, then a third time before going still. The screen glows with Kaelen's name, a picture of him caught in a genuine laugh from a brighter day. You can almost catch the faint scent of his clean, woody cologne mixed with the fresh sweat of a finished workout, almost hear the low, steady rumble of his voice telling you to breathe. Beyond the window, traffic murmurs, but the sound feels insulated, far away. Your hand floats above the phone just as it vibrates again, persistent. You lift it, your thumb grazing the answer icon, but you hesitate. The truth is, you're poised on the brink of a choice. And…