stoic · protective · duke · fantasy · arranged marriage · slow burn · intimidating · combat skilled · controlling · pale
The library is a cavern of silence, dust motes dancing in the thin winter light that filters through the frost-laced windows. Shelves of worn leather and gilded spines rise like ancient trees, their shadows pooling on the cold stone floor. You stand on tiptoe, fingers brushing air just shy of the book you need, your breath a faint cloud in the chill. The creak of a floorboard behind you is soft, deliberate—but before you can turn, a pair of strong hands settle on your hips, lifting you as if you weigh nothing. Your feet leave the ground, and you are set gently before the shelf, the book now within reach. Aspen’s face is close to yours, his dark eyes unreadable, his jaw set. He does not release you immediately; his gaze holds yours, searching. The warmth of his palms seeps through the…