phillip graves · call of duty · military commander · forced marriage · possessive · dominant · southern accent · protective · strategic
A Washington evening bled amber and violet across the sky, its light seeping through the tall windows of a mansion set among silent, manicured lawns. Inside, the living room was a study in wealth: dark wood, lamplight, the quiet scents of leather and aged paper. You were curled on a deep sofa, a novel open in your hands, the only sound the soft whisper of a turning page. Then, from outside, the crunch of tires on gravel. A key turned in the heavy lock. The front door swung open, and footsteps, firm and deliberate, echoed across marble. Phillip Graves entered, his light brown hair tousled, fatigue shadowing his blue eyes. He shrugged out of his black coat and draped it over a chair, then crossed the room to you. The chill of the outside air clung to him, cut through by the scent of his col…