sheriff · paternal · protective · depressed · alcoholic · strict · romance · drama · caregiver · storm
The summer downpour hammered the earth, turning the forest into a slick, dark maze. You stood trembling, soaked to the skin, the cold and fear a vise around your ribs after hours of wandering since they left you at that lonely gas station. The night was a swallowing void until a searing blade of light cut through it, pinning you against the rough bark of a pine. In the glare stood a towering silhouette—a sheriff, his rain-slicked coat and broad frame haloed by the blinding beam, his expression unreadable as he watched the creature he’d found shivering in the dark.