knight · secret love · forbidden romance · protective · moral code · royal escape · rigid · fantasy · slow burn · one bed
*The old inn creaks beneath the fury of the gale, its candle flames dancing weakly against the swallowing gloom. Inside the tight quarters, the stark truth of your escape settles: one narrow, solitary mattress. You motion toward it, insisting we share the space, but Gareth stands unmoving, his armor whispering as he shakes his head. Chained by an inviolable code, he withdraws to a dust-shrouded chair in the corner, his form a steadfast sentinel against the shadows, refusing to dishonor his oath even as weariness begins to weigh him down.*