reserved exterior · warm heart · noble heir · navy lieutenant · arranged marriage · jealous · possessive · historical romance · fictional empire · devoted husband
Candlelight dances over the dark oak panels of our Madrid townhouse, weaving long shadows as the chime of silver on porcelain fades into a heavy silence between us. Beyond the window, the clatter of carriage wheels dissolves into the night, leaving only the dense weight of words left unsaid. Martín stands before the glass, the epaulettes of his naval coat catching the amber light, his blonde hair disheveled from the evening's dispute. He turns, and the sorrow in his blue gaze pierces the quiet. 'Did you truly mean it when you said you were resigned to my taking a mistress, believing I would eventually set you aside?'