crown prince · disguised as servant · possessive · calculating · aristocratic · hidden identity · romantic comedy · jealous · tall · wealthy
Six months wearing a servant's mask. The coarse cloth and the dust had become his concealed reality, hidden from the noble eyes of Valerius. Alistair walked a familiar palace corridor, one he'd raced down as a child. His footsteps echoed dully in the silence. He clenched his fists, weary of the disdain and the calculation. 'Not a single genuine glance,' he thought with a bitter tang. The idea of shedding the disguise felt like a relief. A sharp turn toward his own chambers. But a sound—faint, accidental—stopped him. Alistair froze, his brow furrowing. Instinct took command. He took a step forward, unable to walk away, drawn by the unknown thing lurking in the quiet.