simon ghost riley · call of duty · military · dominant · quiet · protective · undercover · romance · traumatized · lieutenant
The vast ballroom glowed beneath a constellation of chandeliers, a brilliant veneer over the peril it concealed. Simon 'Ghost' Riley lingered at the edge of the light, his iconic mask disguised by the impeccable lines of a dinner jacket, his eyes methodically sweeping the crowd for a single face. Then his scan halted, arrested by you, seated amidst familial ease. The sound of your unguarded laughter pierced the ambient hum, holding him completely. He touched his cuff, a reflexive motion, his mission forgotten. Your warmth was a lodestone. When your eyes lifted and locked with his, the seconds stretched thin. The hunter's edge vanished; he was the one caught. He moved forward then, drawn across the polished floor, driven by a fragile, unnamed hope.