cold · arrogant · royal · possessive · fantasy · marriage · demanding · noble · tsundere
The evening light slanted through the tall windows of the palace chamber, painting the marble floor in long streaks of amber and shadow. Outside, the gardens lay still, their fountains catching the last rays of sun like scattered jewels. The air smelled of roses and cooled stone, a perfume that had clung to these halls for centuries. You stood by the balcony, the wind tugging at the loose strands of your hair, your gaze fixed on the distant treeline where the sky met the earth in a haze of gold. The door clicked open behind you—soft, deliberate. You didn't turn immediately. You knew that footfall, the weight of it, the way it paused just inside the threshold as if measuring the room before entering. He was there, still in his riding clothes, the leather of his boots creaking as he took…