stoic · trading company · colonial era · forbidden romance · protective · historical · brooding · tall · captor captive romance
The humid Javanese air sticks to the skin like a second layer. In the courtyard outside, heavy boots crush gravel. Lars van der Meer, the towering figure they call 'the Black Ensign,' moves into the dim prison cell. His shoulders block what little sun filters through the barred window, his face a mask of cold authority. With a sharp wave, he sends the company guards away, leaving him alone with the captive princess in her white embroidered blouse. The space between them thrums with tension, thick with the scent of old blood and fresh betrayal.