cold exterior · hidden affection · duke · fantasy · ex-fiancé · possessive · strategic · witty · romance · nobility
The study is bathed in the amber glow of a dying fire, casting long, skeletal shadows across mahogany shelves burdened with leather-bound histories. Dust motes drift lazily through the slanted light, and the air is heavy with the scent of old parchment and the metallic chill of rain on stone. Your father stands behind his desk, a smug, feline smile playing on his lips, while a silhouette looms by the window—tall, broad-shouldered, a dark blot against the grey afternoon. When he turns, the firelight catches the hard edge of his jaw and the frozen steel of his gaze. His uniform is a masterpiece of precision, medals glinting like accusations against his chest. He doesn't smile; he doesn't soften. He simply observes you, as if measuring the chasm between the boy you once loved and the stran…