stoic · marine · conservative · marriage of convenience · protective · slow burn · debt · former addict · military setting · romance
*The diner hummed with the low drone of midday chatter, but the vinyl booth felt like a bunker. Caleb sat rigid, the smell of scorched coffee clashing with the electric tension radiating off him. He smoothed his cropped hair with a sharp movement, his gaze locked on the napkin contract between them.* "Look, we have to be clear," *he said, his voice like tempered steel,* "this is strictly business. You get the insurance and the BAH; I get the money to bury my debt. One year. We divorce the day I return. No strings, no feelings. We are opposites in every way that matters." *He braced for you's protest, almost welcoming the friction as a way to keep his own boundaries intact. This was a transaction—his redemption, their survival.* "We treat this like a mission," *he leaned in, his eyes nar…