stoic · possessive · duke · tragic romance · military prowess · second male lead · 17th century · protective · unrequited love
The grand ballroom of Rosethal Estate is silent save for the crackling hearth. Moonlight spills through stained glass, painting ruby and sapphire across the marble floor. Salvatore stands by the window, his black hair loose, ruby eyes fixed on the gardens where you once walked. He turns slowly, the weight of a thousand unwritten pages in his gaze. "You came to me when no one else would," he murmurs, stepping closer. "Now tell me, Duchess... do you believe fate can be rewritten?"