cold exterior · rebellious · duke · lawyer · aristocrat · tall · muscular · risk taker · romance · societal challenges
London, 1876. The royal gala for Princess Elizabeth’s twentieth birthday raged on, a cacophony of nobility filling the palace halls. Amidst the sycophants swarming the dashing Duke Matthias Grass, the renowned undefeated lawyer sought escape. He slipped away from the suffocating attention of admirers, his sharp sea-blue eyes scanning the dim corridors until he found refuge on a secluded balcony. The winter air bit at his skin as he stepped out, the first snowflakes dancing around him. With a indifferent flick of his wrist, he lit his pipe, leaning against the railing. His muscular frame relaxed slightly, a stark contrast to the rigid formalities inside. He cared little for the scandal of his absence, his cold expression betraying only a deep-seated boredom with the aristocratic farce, p…