A collection of short fics for the month of October, reader x character pairings or character studies with smutty, angsty, fluffy vibes combined.

Single mom Hannah Reid came to San Diego for a fresh start, not a fling. Then she literally runs into Jake "Hangman" Seresin at the beach, and then again at the grocery store. And then the coffee shop. And, okay, maybe fate's got a sense of humor. Jake's charming persistence finally wins her over, but Hannah's holding one very big secret: Ava, her four-year-old daughter. Jake never saw himself as the "dad type." Yet when he meets Ava, the cocky fighter pilot who never sticks around, suddenly finds himself wrapped around a tiny finger, and realizes that maybe, just maybe, the best landing of his life isn't on a runway at all.

Hartley Hollis minded her own business and kept to herself in her little corner of Plano, Texas before getting a call for an interview that would change her life. The University of Texas had funded a brand new Equestrian Center, and they were looking for someone to coach the newly minted Reining team. After a string of interviews and trials with disappointing results, UT cashes in a favor from their football coach's past. Hartley drives down to Austin to check out the new Equestrian Center and to see what it has to offer that would make her want to move down there. After discussing salary and benefits, Hartley is more than sold, but before she is hired, she has to take one of the new reining horses out and show her skills. Up in the grandstands, on a hot Austin morning, Glen Powell and Matthew McConaughey are taking a quick tour of the new digs. They stop in their tracks to watch the cute brunette cowgirl take a gorgeous red roan stallion for a spin. She performs perfectly, just like she always does under pressure, making her the ideal candidate for the position. Back in the stables, while she is brushing the horse down to put him away, she recognizes the two men strolling around the aisle, examining every piece of the new building with scrutiny. Nothing but the best for Texas. The Dean introduces Glen and Matthew to Hartley and Glen is intrigued. After this short meet-cute, Hartley and Glen cross paths several more times, including the first Longhorns game and on a movie set as well. Will things between them heat up or will they fizzle out like all of his past relationships?

One week. One wedding. One more shot at forever. Claire Bennet left Siloam Springs nearly twenty years ago with big dreams and no intention of looking back. Now one of Dallas's top wedding planners, she's built a life around picture perfect celebrations, and walls high enough to keep love at a safe distance. But when a high profile wedding takes her back to her hometown, Claire's carefully planned week is thrown into chaos the second she steps onto Cedar Sky Ranch. That's when she comes face to face with Tyler Owens. Her first love. Her first heartbreak. The one man she's never quite been able to forget. Tyler traded the thrill of chasing storms for the steady rhythm of life on his family's struggling ranch. He's poured everything into keeping it afloat, and the last thing he expected was for the girl who once stole his heart to be the one who might help save it. With a wedding that could make or break the ranch's future, Claire and Tyler are forced to work side by side. As old memories spark and new feelings take root, they'll have to decide if this is just business or the beginning of the forever they've both been waiting for.

Fame took him away. Now the only thing he wants to win back is the girl he left behind. He was once the golden boy. The hometown hero who made it all the way to the pros. But fame has a way of changing people...and Gavin Carter is no exception. After a scandal sent his career spiraling and a brutal injury ended it for good, Gavin returns to the only place he ever called home. Now he's trading stadium lights for small town shadows, hoping to rebuild the pieces of a life he lost along the way. Most folks in town want nothing to do with him. And the one person he can't stop thinking about? She wants even less. Emma Rhodes has spent years trying to forget the boy who left her behind. The boy who turned into someone she didn't recognize. She's built a quiet life-steady, safe, and far from heartbreak. But when Gavin shows up again, all smoldering apologies and quiet regret, the past isn't so easy to outrun. He was always different with her. And she never stopped wondering what if. But second chances come at a cost. And trusting the man he's becoming means letting go of the boy who broke her heart.

Georgia and Tyler met at the rodeo. He rode bulls. She ran barrels. They hooked up. Tyler got hurt and Georgia disappeared. Years later, unbeknownst to Tyler, he reunites with Georgia doing the one thing she said she'd never fucking do. Chasing tornados.

Jake "Hangman" Seresin is the biggest asshole that Samantha Kazansky has ever met. He's cocky. He's arrogant. His ego is gigantic. But he's also the sweetest guy she's ever met, and that's why she gives him a chance. Reader discretion is advised. Please be aware that this story is rated EXPLICIT, done so with the knowledge that there may be heavy emotional topics such as mental health issues and emotional trauma, graphic depictions of violence (including but not limited to death, torture, non-con or dubious consent, suicidal ideation, military related violence, weather related violence etc.) graphic descriptions of medical trauma and medical procedures, graphic descriptions of physical trauma, graphic descriptions of sexual content or smut including but not limited to protected and unprotected sex, oral sex, sexual kinks, non-con/dubious consent, etc.) heavy swearing and crude humor, drug/alcohol use, and graphic descriptions of animal death or illness. Again, this is not every chapter, and some chapters may have additional trigger warnings so please feel free to skip those if you feel they may be detrimental to your mental health. Your consumption of content is again, at your own discretion, I do my best to add warnings (whether they actually come up or not, but they are always a possibility.)

Glen has seen all of her movies, from the tiniest roles, to her big breakout role that landed her at the Golden Globes alongside her co-star, Dalton Lane. Glen goes on a wild goose chase trying to connect with her when through chance, he ends up at a table read with her. Set to star next to her as the male lead. Isla only asks one thing of him. "We have to make it look like we don't mean anything to each other." Reader discretion is advised. Please be aware that this story is rated EXPLICIT, done so with the knowledge that there may be heavy emotional topics such as mental health issues and emotional trauma, graphic depictions of violence (including but not limited to death, torture, non-con or dubious consent, suicidal ideation, military related violence, weather related violence etc.) graphic descriptions of medical trauma and medical procedures, graphic descriptions of physical trauma, graphic descriptions of sexual content or smut including but not limited to protected and unprotected sex, oral sex, sexual kinks, non-con/dubious consent, etc.) heavy swearing and crude humor, drug/alcohol use, and graphic descriptions of animal death or illness. Again, this is not every chapter, and some chapters may have additional trigger warnings so please feel free to skip those if you feel they may be detrimental to your mental health. Your consumption of content is again, at your own discretion, I do my best to add warnings (whether they actually come up or not, but they are always a possibility.)

The crown demanded a prince...her heart chose a horseman. Seraphine has always lived on the edges. Of dreams, of belonging, of the life she thought she might one day have. In her cramped Chicago apartment filled with thrifted treasures and fading memories, she balances bookstore shifts with her fading hope for the future. Her art doesn't pay the bills, her degree is still on hold, and the only constants in her life are the cat who roams the poetry shelves at the bookstore and the stars she paints to stay sane. She thought losing her grandmother, the last real family she had, was the hardest thing she'd ever endure. But when a completely stranger appears at her door one day, everything begins to unravel...and then rebuild itself in a way she never could have imagined. Because the stranger leads her to a kingdom she didn't know existed. One where she's considered royalty. Thrust into a world of crumbling traditions, hidden truths, and whispered legends, Sera finds herself caught between the weight of a crown she never asked for and the quiet, steady stableman with secrets of his own. In a far off land, Sera must decide what kind of life she wants to claim for herself, and what she's willing to let go of to claim it.