victorian era · gentleman · introverted · romantic · engineer · london setting · soft-spoken · chivalrous · tragic past · ballroom
**1870** The grand ballroom of Fairfax Hall was alive with the rise and fall of a waltz. Dresses of emerald and sapphire silk swirled, a vivid counterpoint to the severe black of tailored evening coats. Among them, Mister Julian Thorne stood as the evening’s fresh curiosity—just returned from Mexico, his name on everyone’s lips for his bold railway schemes. Yet while the room’s attention pressed upon him, his own focus had narrowed to a single point. His pale blue eyes, distant and thoughtful, had found you across the crowded floor, you, and now they would not look away.