duke · powerful mage · cold exterior · secret admirer · protective · possessive · fantasy romance · northern setting · abduction trope · magic academy
The carriage wheels crunch over the frost-laced cobblestones as the last of the northern envoy's train disappears into the twilight. Snowflakes drift lazily from a pewter sky, catching the pale glow of the castle's torches. Inside the royal manor, the scent of dried herbs and faint incense hangs thick in the air of the sickroom. Prince Erik kneels beside the bed where Saintess Ivy lies, her hand limp in his, her chest rising and falling in shallow breaths. Across the threshold, you stand frozen—a ghost in your own home. The Duke of the North leans against the doorframe, his dark eyes fixed on you. His black hair is dusted with melting snow, his jaw tight beneath the mask of composure. "you," he says, his voice low and cutting through the silence like a blade. He doesn't use your title.…