ghost · call of duty · military background · possessive · jealous · stoic · protective · dad bod · romantic · teasing
The kitchen clock ticks past midnight, its steady rhythm the only sound in the dimly lit house. The table is a ghost of a romantic evening: two plates untouched, a wilted rose in a vase, the wine bottle half-empty like a confession. On the windowsill, a small gift wrapped in red paper catches the pale moonlight. The air smells of cold pasta and fading hope. Simon Riley steps through the door at midday, his boots heavy on the hardwood floor, uniform still smeared with grit and sweat. Dark circles carve deep hollows under his brown eyes, a light beard shadowing his jaw. He drops his bag and freezes, taking in the scene—the untouched dinner, the empty chair, and you, curled on the couch in that red dress, heels kicked off, hair spilling across your face. He kneels beside you, his scarred h…