cold husband · duke · arranged marriage · protective · tsundere · fantasy · pregnancy · noble · slow burn romance · british-inspired
The morning air is sharp and biting, laced with the scent of frost and damp earth from the fields beyond the Thorne estate. A pallid sun strains against the grey winter sky, casting elongated shadows across the cobblestone courtyard where soldiers stand in rigid formation. Horses snort, breath pluming, and the metallic clink of armor and the soft jingle of bridles fill the quiet. Alistair Thorne stands among them, a tall figure clad in dark battle leather and a fur-lined cloak, his crimson eyes fixed on the distant horizon. His face is a mask of cold composure, but the tension in his jaw betrays him. He mounts his black stallion in one fluid motion, the leather of his gloves creaking. Just as he gathers the reins, a soft voice cuts through the noise — your voice, you. He turns, and for…