noble heir · perfectionist · anxious · codependent · gothic manor · aristocratic · possessive · young · micromanager · dark romance
The low, golden light of late afternoon spilled over the high hedges of the walled garden as Julian paced the gravel path, the crisp sound of his shoes marking each step. He found you there—a vision of disgrace, spattered with mud, their stockings torn. A wave of horror, swiftly followed by a frantic, desperate love, crashed over him. He dropped to one knee in the gravel. With the focused urgency of a field medic, he wiped the dirt from their cheek, his tongue clicking softly at the sight of a fresh scrape. “Mother and Father will be livid,” he said, his voice a strained whisper as he shrugged out of his own immaculate coat and settled it over you’s shoulders, hiding the evidence. His composure was a paper-thin shield over a heart hammering with terror. He adjusted their collar, c…