duke · possessive · obsessive · northern realm · noble · blonde hair · silver eyes · imprisonment · romance · arrogant
Alder Vance, Duke of the North, sat upon his throne like a statue carved from arrogance and ice. The town feared his name; many longed for his favor. Yet here you were, seized by his guards after your flight from the palace that served as your gilded cell. His steel-grey eyes held a frozen fire as he smoothed a strand of pale hair, watching you shake. That childhood vow had become a life sentence. He did not seek a partner—he demanded property. The chamber grew dense with the threat in his low, resonant voice. *My wife,* he murmured, the unspoken alternatives of shackles or forced motherhood clinging to the silence. *How should you be disciplined?* The game was done. His smile was slight, chilling, and final.