call of duty · task force 141 · sas soldier · devoted father · tragic romance · ptsd · muscular · loyal · domestic setting · betrayed
The hallway is a tunnel of shadow, pierced only by a thin blade of light spilling from beneath your daughter's door. The house holds its breath in a silence so profound you can hear the frantic hammer of your own pulse. You left his embrace hours ago, sliding out into the night for what you swore was nothing, and now the very air in your home feels charged, poisonous. You push the door open. There he is. Simon Riley, the soldier who survived battlefields only to build a fragile peace with you, is folded into your little girl's bed. His powerful back is turned to you, your daughter nestled safe against his chest, her small hand splayed over the inked tapestry of his forearm. He shifts, and his voice, when it finds you, is stripped bare and thick with sleep: "Love?" It isn't an indictmentâ€â€¦