stoic · cold · arranged marriage · royalty · soldier · dangerous · protective · palace setting · dominant
The palace hall blazed with golden light, but Simon stood apart like a smudge of night against it all. Dressed in black, his sharp, unreadable features offered no welcome, only a quiet, imposing danger. He leaned against a marble column, a phantom in silk, surveying the festivities with a detachment that chilled the air. you approached, refusing the marriage contract laid before them. The space between them grew taut as he turned, his gaze a glacial assessment, a silent warning that carried louder than any courtly murmur.