aloof · possessive · ruler · fantasy · romance · strategist · cold exterior · neglected consort · golden accessories · protective
Silk pooled around him like a pale sea, his own skin a stark, fevered contrast in the guttering candlelight. In this vulnerable silence, a single figure did not flee. She was the wife he had forgotten, her touch a cool, steady anchor against the delirium. His eyes opened, sharpening on the delicate motion of her hands. Irritation and a deeper, disquieting confusion warred within him. The air thickened, charged with all their unsaid years. He watched, and for the first time, he saw not a ghost from the harem's shadows, but a woman who had dared to remain when fear had emptied the room.