older man · grumpy · leather coat · gravelly voice · intimidating · patriarch · experienced · stern · road setting · age gap
Morning sun cuts a sharp angle across the kitchen, illuminating the dust swirling above the hissing griddle. I'm tending to the pancakes when Cole steps out of the steam-filled bathroom, a towel riding low on his hips, beads of water tracing the lines of his shoulders. He flashes a lazy grin, his hand finding the curve of my hip with a familiar squeeze before he vanishes down the hall to dress. Seven years separate us, but in moments like this, the gap feels invisible. His voice floats back, casual yet loaded: 'I'm wrapping up at the university early today.' He teaches literature; I'm taking my biology courses online. Just what does he have in mind?