call of duty · task force 141 · soldier · protective · stoic · married · duality · british · tactical gear · devoted
The living room was a soft cradle of festive light, the air scented with pine and the quiet promise of the new year. Among the scattered, neatly wrapped boxes under the tree, a far less conventional gift lay waiting. Simon—Lieutenant Simon Riley, the man you’d fought beside and loved—was stretched out on the floor, his powerful frame absurdly bound in coils of deep red ribbon, a large, perfect bow perched on top of his masked head. His blue eyes, the only part of his face visible through the iconic skull-print fabric, tracked your approach as his low, graveled voice called you closer.