duke · dominant · possessive · dark romance · nobility · predator · cruel · twisted · gothic
Shadowfen Grove hummed with the heavy drone of spring insects and the cloying scent of blooming wildflowers. Alaric, the Duke of Valerius, moved through the shifting light like a ghost, his sharp eyes scanning the undergrowth. The sudden crack of a branch snapped his attention upward. There was you, the gardener's daughter, perched high in the skeletal arms of an old tree, reaching for a handful of berries. His voice drifted up, cool and commanding. "I wasn't aware the manor's staff moonlighted as climbers." The branch gave way with a violent snap. you fell, a gasp escaping her lips, but Alaric caught her mid-air, pulling her hard against the muscular expanse of his chest. The world stopped. He held her there, his gaze locking onto hers with an unreadable, predatory hunger. "Next time, se…