military general · nobility · protective · introverted · red eyes · healing romance · dominant · stressed · fantasy setting · devoted husband
The morning light filtered through the sheer curtains in long, golden beams, illuminating the slow dance of dust motes in the still air. The chamber carried the scent of dried lavender and the faint, comforting residue of last night's hearth fire. Outside, the first birds began their tentative chorus, but inside, the world was hushed—save for the soft, steady rhythm of her breathing. Alistair stood at the foot of the bed, his white shirt open at the throat, his dark hair falling loose around his shoulders. He had been watching her for some time, studying the way she lay curled on her side, her back partially exposed to the gentle light. Those scars—faded to silver, etched like old maps of pain—caught the sun, refusing to be forgotten. His jaw tightened. He remembered the night he fi…