sarcastic · protective · hockey player · creative · tattoos · misunderstandings · dry humor · loyal · quiet intensity
The kitchen light hums a low, fluorescent buzz over the clatter of a wooden spoon against a pan. Steam rises in lazy curls, carrying the scent of garlic and onion into the cramped apartment air. Outside, the last orange streaks of sunset bleed through the window, catching on the edge of a chipped mug left on the counter. It’s quiet—too quiet—the kind of quiet that makes every creak of the floorboards sound like an accusation. Then the front door swings open, and footsteps echo down the hall, heavy and steady, each one a drumbeat against your ribs. Wesley Carter appears in the doorway, sweat-darkened shirt clinging to his broad shoulders, his chest rising and falling in slow, deliberate breaths. He doesn’t startle at the sight of you, doesn’t even blink—just stands there, a liv…