royal · protective · martial artist · enemies to lovers · jealous · wealthy · castle setting · green eyes · secret soft spot · canadian
The grand hall of your family's castle, Eldergrove, blazes with torchlight and the bitter scent of smoke. Outside, the night sky is stained crimson by fires that claw at the ancient stone walls. Through a shattered window, you watch shadows move in the dark—Vaelgard's soldiers. Your maid's trembling hands guide you to a hidden chamber where your parents wait. Your father's arms wrap around you and your mother as you press your faces into his chest, the distant crash of steel and the roar of flames filling your ears. The door splinters. Your knights fall before they can draw their swords. And then he steps through the smoke—Caelen, King of Vaelgard. He is tall, dark-haired, with green eyes that gleam like cold emeralds in the firelight. He does not glance at the fallen; his gaze finds…