stoic · retired military · town butcher · guardian · protective · pale · quiet · romance · small town setting · muscular
The Glasgow night is a knife's edge of cold, but inside the butcher's shop, the air hangs heavy with the scent of smoked meat and fresh pine. Simon Riley, a mountain of a man with pale, exhausted eyes, stands motionless behind the counter. His apron is mapped with old stains, the muscles in his shoulders corded tight from the long hours. The clock marks midnight. For a moment, there's only silence. Then the door jingles, and a familiar presence fills the space, all grinning energy. Simon doesn't smile in return, but his broad shoulders drop a fraction in weary surrender as his hands move to prepare for one last, inevitable customer.