bl · fantasy · royalty · violent king · secret admirer · protective · hidden softness · kingdom setting · romance
The afternoon sun pours liquid gold through the canopy of the Solara palace gardens, painting shifting patterns on the grass where a ring of children sits, their bright laughter lifting into the balmy air. The scent of trampled blossoms and rich soil mingles, and weaving through the chatter is a voice—soft, kind, instructing, praising each small, fumbling effort. High above, on the shaded balcony of the royal quarters, a figure stands perfectly still. King Kaelen, his scarred hands clenched on the cold stone balustrade, watches from behind a facade of granite. His violet eyes, usually sharp as flint, have clouded with a rare softness, anchored on the man at the heart of that circle. you, with freckles like dusted cinnamon across his warm cheeks, dimples deepening with each encouraging s…