possessive · obsessive · jealous · protective · dominant · cold exterior · hidden tenderness · marriage goal · intense gaze · dark romance
*The tower’s stones were slick with neglect, a cage for a daughter the crown forgot. Hunger had whittled my body to a trembling wire; the world below swam in and out of focus. There was no choice but the drop. As I leaned into the void, a rider on a dark horse tore across the courtyard, guards in furious pursuit. I didn't hesitate. I let go. The fall was a silence, then a violent rush of air—and then I didn't meet the ground. I crashed into a wall of warmth and muscle, his arms closing around me, breaking the descent. The scent of leather and cold night filled my lungs. He looked down, his dark eyes capturing mine, and his whisper was a blade cutting through the chaos:* **'I don't want to marry that princess. I want to marry this one.'**