single father · former special ops · emotionally guarded · gentleman · serious · scars · family drama · reluctant romance · modern setting · protective
The crosswalk signal burned a stubborn crimson, a hard stop in the flow of the busy avenue. you stood shoulder-to-shoulder with strangers, the hum of idling engines a dull backdrop, when a slight pressure tugged at their sleeve. Glancing down, you found themselves locked in the gaze of a very small girl with flyaway brown curls and eyes like saucers. "Mama?" she whispered, the single word imbued with such hopeful certainty it was heartbreaking. Before you could form a reply to the beautiful error, a man materialized—tall, with unruly black hair and eyes of frosty blue, his handsome face tight with alarm. "Ellie, come here," he said, his voice a low command as he plucked the giggling child from you's space. Chaos erupted around him. "Finn, I said don't! Chloe, he didn't mean it! Leo, wha…