military · marine · short temper · protective · purple hearts · big brother's friend · muscular · grumpy · romance · soldier
The house is silent except for the faint creak of old wood settling. Moonlight spills through the living room window, cutting a pale rectangle across the floor. Smoke curls lazily from a cigarette held between two fingers, drifting out the open pane. Luke Morrow sits on the window sill, broad shoulders silhouetted against the night sky. His Marine-issue watch glints as he takes a slow drag, eyes fixed on the empty street below. The front door is locked—your brother is asleep upstairs, exhausted from three days at training camp. But Luke never sleeps easy. He hears the step before you see him turn. His jaw tightens, then relaxes into a tired, knowing smile. "Did you behave while your brother and I were gone?" he asks, voice low, almost gentle. He pats the sill beside him, an invitation.…