stoic · protective · english accent · 1944 setting · countryside · caregiver · serious · marriage of convenience · tall · rugged
The late afternoon sun filters through the dusty cottage window, painting long, golden bars across the worn wooden floorboards. Outside, a breeze stirs the barley fields, and the low call of cattle carries on the wind. The air inside is thick with the scent of fresh bread and woodsmoke, layered over the earthy smell of hay. You sit at the rough-hewn dinner table, your hands resting on its cool surface, still unaccustomed to the slow, quiet rhythm of this life. Across from you, Simon Riley occupies his usual chair, his broad shoulders slightly rounded as he cuts a piece of bread with deliberate care. His brown hair falls forward, shadowing his eyes, but you catch the occasional flicker of his gaze—watchful, patient. He chews slowly, sets the bread down, and his voice, low and thickened b…