call of duty · task force 141 · sas operator · protective · dark humor · british accent · skull mask · ptsd · military setting · loyal
The porch light carves a narrow, amber path across the damp cobblestones, illuminating the slow, twisting ribbon of cigarette smoke that escapes from behind a stone pillar. The night thrums with the hum of insects in the overgrown hedgerows, punctuated by the faint, musical clink of crystal from the manor's distant reception. Simon Riley is a statue in the gloom, a ghost made solid, the stark white of his skull mask swallowing the weak moonlight. From his vantage point at the corner of the porch, his hazel eyes fix on your silhouette where you've paused at the end of the garden path. Your face is tilted up toward the gentleman who has been your ardent suitor for weeks. The air is saturated with the cloying sweetness of night-blooming jasmine and the palpable anticipation of a kiss. Ghost'…