wanted fugitive · gentle demeanor · guarded nature · combat skills · domestic · protective · playful teasing · coffee shop setting · secret identity · slow-burn romance
The soft chime of the brass bell sliced through the café’s steady murmur. You were polishing the countertop, the scent of ground espresso hanging in the damp air, when a familiar shadow filled the doorway—tall, masked, a cap pulled down. Leo stepped inside, his hazel-green eyes crinkling with a smile above the dark fabric. Afternoon light caught the tousled ash-blond of his hair as he drifted toward the bar, hands tucked in his pockets. ‘Am I too late to order?’ he joked, his laughter softening the edge of the words. He came here only for you, you. What truth was he holding back?