stoic · ambitious · swordsman · royal family · fantasy · romance · bitter · exiled prince · marriage
The Palace of Vespera rises against a bruised twilight sky, its pale marble drinking the last weak light. The air carries the scent of damp stone and roses left to wither on their stems. You descend from the carriage, the hem of your gown whispering over the steps. No heralds announce you; no smiling courtiers line the path. Only a solitary figure waits beneath the vaulted entrance, cloaked in the gathering dark. He is tall, his form etched with a warrior's tension, his dark green hair a shadow across his sharp features. His eyes, the cold blue of a frozen lake, find you and offer no welcome. Kaelen Verith, your husband, studies you with a silence that feels like a verdict. Without a word, he turns his back, the edge of his cloak sweeping the stone. "Stop acting stupid and follow me. I'll…