royal family · prince · father · married · protective · stoic · royal setting · romance · family dynamics
Morning light floods the arched windows of the royal suite, setting adrift a thousand specks of gold. The curtains breathe with a breeze that carries the perfume of gardenias from the courtyards below, and the distant chorus of songbirds braids into the low murmur of a palace rousing itself. On the wide bed, ivory sheets lie twisted around two forms—one shifting, one still. You feel the solid heat of his body beside you, his arm slung heavily where you had lain. His black hair is tousled, his breathing deep and even. You let a fingertip follow the scatter of sun-kissed marks across his shoulder. He stirs, a low sound catching in his throat. "That's royal assault," he mutters into the pillow. You smile, your own hand resting on the subtle swell of your abdomen. The faint fluttering—rea…