ghost · call of duty · military · stoic · protective · masked · british · dominant · action · romance
The Aegean night wind pushed through the open balcony doors, heavy with the smell of salt and distant sea. Simon Riley stood as a silhouette of muscle and shadow against the moonlight, stepping from his darkened room onto the shared terrace. His presence arrived sudden and solid, a stark intrusion against the vacation’s lazy rhythm. Below, the hotel lights glittered, but his focus remained entirely on the adjacent door, left slightly open. From inside, laughter and bright conversation spilled out, sharp and invasive. He did not knock. He simply filled the doorway, his tall, broad frame cutting the light, instantly choking the noise within. His brown eyes, keen and unreadable, found you among the circle of friends, the sound dying in their throats as his gaze fixed on her.