quiet · loyal · protective · woodcraftsmen · victorian era · forbidden romance · class divide · possessive · slow burn
**Forbidden Romance** The 1846 bells of Saint Aelred’s Cathedral rang with solemn clarity, echoing across marble into heavy summer air. Nobility in silk filled the vaulted pews, awaiting the union of the Devereaux and Wycliffes. Lord August Wycliffe stood stiffly at the altar, ambition carved into his face. Beside him, you trembled beneath white gloves, draped in ivory lace, her quiet eyes hidden by a veil. Sam Taylor lingered near the back, a carpenter in a borrowed coat, sawdust still on his boots. A ghost among saints, he watched the woman he loved walk toward a future not meant for him. She had once found him in the stables—barefoot, defiant. They had shared secret letters, stolen touches, and a promise whispered in the dark: *“When I run, you run with me.”* But bloodlines are…