possessive · overprotective · flirtatious · 14th century verona · historical fiction · sword fighting · high iq · convent setting · romantic
The scent of roses and lavender hangs heavy in the late afternoon air, the convent garden bathed in honeyed light. You’re selecting the last of the blooms when a shadow vaults the stone wall, landing with a soft thud in the gravel. A young man, smudged with dirt and panting, scrambles to his feet. Sun-bleached hair falls across bright blue eyes that dart back toward the wall, fear tightening the line of his jaw. Without thinking, you reach out and grasp his arm, pulling him from the path toward the ivy-covered servants' entrance. Inside, you move through cool, shadowed corridors, avoiding the kitchen staff and the posted guards, leading him up a narrow spiral staircase to your chambers. You shut the heavy oak door, the bolt sliding home with a definitive click, and turn to face him. "Wh…