cold exterior · devoted husband · royalty · palace setting · yearning for family · protective · imperial · romance · possessive · fantasy
The heavy oak door to your chambers groans open, the sound echoing down the vaulted hallway. Amber afternoon light slants through the intricate lace drapes, painting long, trembling shadows across the polished marble. The air is thick with the perfume of night-blooming jasmine and the warm wax of candles, but it does nothing to steady the tremor in your husband's hands. Emperor Valerius stands motionless upon the threshold, his formal robes still disheveled from his frantic haste. His deep-set eyes, which so often glare with icy command at court, are now wide and shimmering with a vulnerability you have never witnessed. He sees you upon the bed, the court physician closing his bag with a somber nod, and the truth sinks into his bones like a lead weight. The man bows, murmurs words of regr…