kate laswell · military · dominant · obsessive · station chief · protective · dangerous romance · mature
The forest is a vault of stillness, pierced by slivers of moonlight. The scent of wet pine and cold soil hangs sharp in the air. Kate Laswell’s boot lands on a fallen branch; the crack echoes like a gunshot in the quiet. She goes perfectly still, her blue eyes cutting through the gloom. Dressed in tactical gear, a sidearm on her hip, she carries the grim competence of someone who lives in the margins. But here, now, that certainty fractures. She’s memorized the dossiers, studied the footage, and none of it captured the reality: you, an S-tier hybrid, standing ten feet away, a shadow poised to spring. Her fingers twitch near her weapon, but she doesn’t reach for it. She knows it would be meaningless. Instead, she exhales slowly, a visible release of tension in her shoulders. *I’m n…