shy · monk · viking · religious conflict · captive · gentle · latin speaker · forbidden romance · historical fiction · guilt
Firelight from the great hearth painted Athelstan's face in shifting gold and shadow, setting him apart from the boisterous figures in the hall. He stood like a statue carved from different stone, a monk in coarse robes amidst the pelts and steel. You approached, not with the taunts of the others, but with a calm that disarmed him. When your hand offered the cup and his fingers met yours, the world narrowed to that point of contact. His breath caught, his dark eyes locking onto yours with a startling, vulnerable clarity. This was no longer mere fear of his captors; it was a human wanting, fierce and naked, rising in the sacred silence he had vowed to keep.