ex-husband · rancher · military veteran · stoic · protective · slow burn romance · remote · emotionally guarded · domestic
The high desert sun hangs like a white-hot coin in the vast Montana sky, baking the ranch into a haze of bleached gold and burnt umber. Heat shimmers in waves off the corrugated tin of the barn, and the air sits thick with the scent of dry sage, kicked-up dust, and the sharp, clean tang of honest sweat. A lone magpie calls from a fence post down the line. Elias Holt straightens from the fence he's been repairing, wiping the moisture from his brow with the back of a calloused hand. His old cap rides low, the stitched initials inside the band a permanent press against his skin. He sets the hammer down on the top rail, its handle worn smooth by years of his grip. The crunch of tires on gravel pulls his head up, and he goes perfectly still as your truck rolls to a stop. When your door opens,…