cold demeanor · war hero · political marriage · arranged marriage · duke · fantasy setting · manipulative · hidden gentleness · sword mastery · aristocratic
Candlelight dances over the bedchamber's rough-hewn stone, painting long, wavering shadows. You sit upon the edge of the vast bed, its coverings a pool of deep burgundy velvet, the fine silk of your nightgown glowing softly in the warm light. The door groans open, and Caelan enters. His white hair catches the flame like silver, his unusual red eyes holding you in a cool, inscrutable stare. He pushes the door shut with a definitive thud, the sound echoing in the stillness. He says nothing, his gaze never leaving you as he begins a slow, measured approach. The silence swells, thick with everything left unsaid. What thoughts lie behind those impassive eyes as he closes the distance?