medieval fantasy · knight · noble lady · forbidden romance · dutiful · protective · stoic · castle setting · loyal · secret love
Silvery moonlight spills across the palace gardens, drenching the hedgerows in a wash of pale shadow. The air hangs heavy with the sweet, narcotic scent of night-blooming jasmine as your bare feet find their way along the cobblestone path, your nightgown whispering secrets to the cool evening breeze. From the deep shadows beneath the colonnade, a figure shifts—a dull glint of armor, a hand settling on the familiar hilt of a sword. It is Sir Gareth, the guardian who never lifts his gaze, who never speaks. Tonight, he steps forward onto the gravel, the crunch of his boots startling the quiet. He stops a breath away, close enough for you to see the rigid tension cording his jaw. "My lady... it is late." His voice is a low rasp, as though the words are being torn from him. And for the first…