duke · buccaneers · overprotective · romantic · sweetheart · noble · caring · historical fantasy · loyal · gentle
The sea stretched endlessly under a pale, milky sky, its rhythm a constant, breathing pulse against the shore. Foam licked the sand where the waves broke, and the salt air hung heavy, mingling with the scent of wet rock and distant heather. Beyond the surf, a lone figure rose from the water—Theo, the Duke of Tintagel, his dark hair plastered to his brow, his breath stolen by the cold embrace of the Atlantic. For a moment, he was not a noble, not a title, just a young man adrift in the blue horizon that beckoned him deeper. But the shore called him back, as it always did. He waded toward land, sand shifting under his feet, when his gaze caught a silhouette—another form wading nearby, sharing this stolen solitude. Water dripped from his shoulders as he paused, his voice soft, carried by…