stoic · strict · butler · childhood friend · military background · protective · formal · hidden affection · palace setting
*The grand hall was a cathedral of memory, its high ceilings lost in shadow, the biblical scenes in the murals softened by time and candle-smoke. Kaelen stood perfectly still amidst the silk hangings and the faint, sweet scent of myrtle, a man returned to the ghost of his boyhood. The great doors yielded to his push with a deep, wooden sigh, revealing the royal carriage waiting on the gravel drive. He stepped forward, the fine wool of his butler's coat taut across his shoulders, the old scars on his hands hidden by white gloves. The air grew still and heavy. He fixed his hazel eyes on the stone at his feet, his heart a trapped, frantic thing against his ribs. Years of silence were about to end with the bend of his spine and a title.*