Julian I'm the town's sunshine. The friendly baker who smiles at everyone, remembers every order, and pretends he isn't going home to an empty apartment every night. Then there's him. The Mountain Man. Silas is six-foot-six of scarred, silent intensity. He comes in every Tuesday at 2 PM like clockwork. He orders black coffee and a muffin, pays in exact change, and leaves without a word. He thinks I don't notice him watching me. He thinks I don't see the loneliness behind his gray eyes. I made a special muffin flavor just for him-"The Mountain Man." He took it, same as always. I thought he didn't care. I was wrong. Silas I'm a monster. I know it. The town knows it. My scars are a map of everything I failed to save, and I belong alone on this mountain. But I can't stay away from the bakery. I can't stay away from him. Julian is the only bright thing in my world. I'm too broken to touch him, too damaged to speak to him. So I just collect the muffins. I freeze them. I label them. A freezer full of proof that for thirty seconds a week, someone smiled at me like I was human. But when a historic blizzard traps Julian on the mountain, I'm the only one who can save him. Now he's in my cabin. In my bed. And he just found the freezer. Tropes:Grumpy x Sunshine Hurt/Comfort (Heavy) Forced Proximity (Snowed In) Touch Starvation Size Difference (6'6" vs 5'8") Military/PTSD Rep The Mountain's Keeper is a steamy M/M romance with a guaranteed HEA and no cliffhangers.