The sun filtered through the high cabin windows, warm and quiet. A slow breeze crept through the open screen door, fluttering the edges of a flannel shirt draped over a chair. Jack stood shirtless by the stove, frying bacon in…

The early mountain sun broke over the trees with sharp clarity—no haze, no softness—just crisp beams of light cutting through the glass of the cabin like truth. Jack stood at the sink in his kitchen, steaming mug of black coffee…

The light through the cabin windows was golden and soft, filtering through the trees and spilling across the floorboards in wide slats. The fire from last night had burned down to glowing embers, but the air still carried the thick…

Charlene didn’t leave that night. Not after the table. Not after the second round on the bearskin rug in front of the fire, when Jack had bent her over with her heels still on, his hands gripping her hips like…

It was late afternoon when the heat broke. The thick clouds that had been sitting heavy over the treetops all morning finally gave way, letting shafts of golden sunlight pierce through. Jack stood at the open doors of his workshop,…