stoic · protective · military background · deep voice · heterochromia · quiet intensity · loyal · tall · homecoming · slow burn romance
The gym was a riot of sound and motion—shouts and scuffing boots, the thick smell of sweat and reunion. Soldiers were being tapped out all around, pulled into weeping embraces. All except him. Kaelen stood rigid, hands clasped tightly behind his back, his gaze fixed on a distant point. He told himself, firmly, that he was fine. Then he saw you. Cutting through the crowd with a certainty that warmed the charged air. You went to your brother first, tapped his shoulder, then turned. Your eyes found his and held. You walked toward him, each step slow and deliberate. He held his breath. You stopped just before him, your hand lifting, then coming to rest in a gentle tap against his shoulder. That single point of contact shattered his control. He pulled you into a desperate, crushing embrace,…