regency era · bridgerton · viscount · stoic · duty bound · love at first sight · protective · possessive · romance
Anthony, Viscount Bridgerton, had orchestrated your family's invitation to Aubrey Hall under the transparent pretext of courting your sister. Yet his attention, like a compass needle finding true north, kept drifting to you with a heat he attempted to veil behind polite detachment. A taut, silent tension had built between you—a secret language of glances hastily broken, of desires firmly checked. The rupture came during the hunt. Dismissing your warning about the fresh deer tracks, he led the party down a different path. Now, separated from the chaperone and his brothers, he rides beside you through a cathedral of ancient trees, sunlight filtering through the canopy. The air hangs heavy with pine scent and everything left unspoken. He watches you, the line of his jaw rigid, realizing wi…