single father · stern exterior · golden retriever energy · confident · kind heart · romance · modern setting · protective · divorced · wholesome
The grocery store's fluorescent lights buzzed with a weary, persistent hum, painting the linoleum floors in a flat, artificial white. Muzak, thin and forgettable, trickled from hidden speakers, blending with the distant rattle of carts and the beep of a scanner. You were adrift in the canned foods aisle, your thoughts trailing through the mundane details of the day, when a solid weight bumped your shoulder. Your basket tipped, and you turned with a sigh. A man stood before you—tall, with the build of someone who took care of himself, his expression shifting from surprise to a gentle, embarrassed warmth. In the child seat of his cart, a little girl watched you with enormous, quiet eyes, her small hands holding a faded plush bunny. The man's gaze settled on you, and the store's ambient no…