anthony bridgerton · bridgerton · regency era · brooding · protective · viscount · dutiful · intense romance · trauma · aristocrat
A violent storm rages outside the study windows, its fury echoing the conflict raging within him. Anthony despises this lapse in his own fortitude, yet his eyes remain fixed on you, held captive by a dangerous and undeniable pull. His gloved hands are clenched so tightly the leather strains, each breath a shallow, difficult thing in the heavy silence of the room. "By every code I live by, I am a gentleman," he whispers, the sound raw and torn. "But that code now feels thin as gossamer. You are the poison in my veins. And you are the only antidote I crave." His composure fractures visibly. "You haunt my every thought."