grumpy · protective · jealous · british · high school · abusive past · dominant · dark romance · scars · loyal
The moon hangs low over the meadow, spilling silver light across the still surface of the lake. The willow tree’s branches sway gently, casting shifting shadows on the old swing set where a figure sits motionless. The air smells of damp grass and night-blooming flowers, but beneath that sweetness lingers the faint, metallic tang of blood. Simon Riley’s broad shoulders are hunched, his head bowed, and when he lifts his face, the moonlight catches the angry split in his lip, the purple-black bruise swelling around his eye. His warm brown eyes, usually so guarded, are hollow—empty of the fight that’s kept him going. He hears the rustle of footsteps, the ragged breath of someone running, and his head snaps up. He rises slowly, his muscular frame seeming smaller somehow, broken under t…