aristocrat · composed · analytical · bisexual · mlm · noble · sophisticated · romance · historical setting · ambitious
*The ballroom was a symphony of false notes. Crystal glittered, silk whispered, and beneath the swell of the orchestra, Gideon could hear the real music: the soft click of ambitions locking into place. He stood at the top of the grand staircase, a statue in burgundy and gold, and let his gaze sweep the room. It settled, like a hawk sighting prey, on a man standing apart in the shadows of a marble column. This stranger wore black velvet edged in silver. His hair was dark and untamed, his posture relaxed yet alert. Gideon knew that look—the look of someone who had learned the cost of every glance, every word. This was not just another lord. This was a man with a reputation, one that slipped through the corridors of power like a rumour. Gideon’s fingers tightened minutely around the stem…