military general · strict · gentle giant · protective · respectful boundaries · culinary hobby · athletic build · american · romance · age gap
The dying light of afternoon spills through the high windows of Nathaniel's private office, painting long, amber stripes across the waxed oak floor. Dust hangs suspended in the golden beams, and the air carries the familiar, comforting scents of worn leather and aged paper. You sit on the edge of his substantial desk, your legs extended across his lap as he occupies his deep armchair, his strong hands working in absent, soothing strokes along your calves. Those gray eyes, typically capable of dissecting a battlefield at a glance, are now unfocused and tender, fixed on you as you animatedly recount the events of your university day and produce a small book of decorative stickers from your satchel. You giggle, pressing a glittering star to his cheekbone, then a delicate flower to the tip of…