He looks as lonely as I feel.
Maybe lonelier.
Crow was the mysterious man who lived alone in the mountains and was treated like a freak on the few occasions he ventured into town. Cyrus was new to town, looking for a fresh start, and was instantly drawn to and intrigued by Crow the first time he saw him in town. Crow was used to being alone and preferred it that way until Cyrus ventured onto his mountain. Suddenly, Crow couldn’t imagine being alone anymore and vowed to do everything he could to keep Cyrus in his life.
“No one has ever been this nice to me. No one has ever made me feel like I matter. I’ve always been something people can throw away. I don’t know how to deserve this.”
“You already do.”
This was the story of two broken men who each survived unthinkable trauma but managed to find solace and home in each other. Both of their backstories tugged at my heartstrings. Crow was very damaged having been raised in a cult and then hiding himself away on a mountain for the last 10 years. It was sad seeing how the townspeople treated him and seeing him turn feral as he tried to get away from them made it even sadder. I could see why he was drawn to Cyrus. For one, something deep within him recognized the same loneliness he carried and Cyrus was the only person to show him any kindness.
“You say I’m yours, but you’re mine too, Crow. We belong to each other.”
Cyrus had spent most of his life being used and thrown away so it made sense that he would be receptive to Crow’s possessiveness. All he ever wanted was to be valued and even if Crow struggled with voicing his feelings, he showed Cyrus how important he was through his actions. Crow was very possessive and always wanted to claim/mark Cyrus (which Cyrus loved) but he was also super caring and gentle afterward. There was a fair amount of hurt/comfort in this one and I thought those bits were quite well done.
If you’re into possessive MCs, claiming/marking, primal play, and broken characters finding love in one another – you’ll probably enjoy this one!
How, I wanted to ask him. How can you love someone as broken as me? But then maybe that was why he could—we’d both been dropped time and time again, cracks in our armor, little pieces of us breaking off, but somehow, together, we filled in each other’s imperfections. All my cracks and chips were sealed in by Crow, and his by me.
The Book Boyfriend Addict 