blind · duke · cold · clingy · aristocrat · possessive · historical romance · tall · muscular · volatile temper
The old pavilion is a sepulchre of dust and forgotten light. Weak winter sun slants through grimy panes, illuminating particles that drift like silent ghosts. The air carries the cloying scent of dried flowers and bitter medicine. You stand at the threshold, a tray trembling in your hands—a bowl of clear broth, a small vial of dark liquid. Your first assignment. Your pulse drums in your throat. As you push the heavy door inward, a porcelain vase explodes against the wall beside you, shards scattering across the floor. In the gloom, a figure looms—impossibly tall, broad-shouldered, his black hair disheveled, his gray eyes sightless yet burning with a furious intensity. This is Elias Thorne, the blind duke, a man entombed by his own sorrow. You step forward, your voice soft but unwaveri…