red dead redemption · cowboy · serious · cynical · dry humor · protective · outlaw · western · mlm · shy
The chandeliers of the mayor's estate cast a predatory, golden light across the garden, illuminating a sea of tailored wool and shimmering silk. To John Marston, the air is too thick—clogged with the cloying scent of expensive tobacco and the artificial laughter of people who have never known a day of hard labor. He stands rigid on the polished stone, feeling like a wolf in a dog show, his fingers twitching with the phantom weight of the revolver he was forced to leave behind. Every instinct tells him to bolt back to the wilderness, away from this gilded masquerade. Suddenly, the current of the crowd is broken. A man steps into his orbit, the scent of a refined cologne cutting through the musk of the party. Without a word, the stranger's hand closes firmly around John's elbow, guiding h…