cold exterior · possessive · war hero · duke · arranged marriage · fencing skills · protective · fantasy romance · scars · loyal
The evening air in the Duchy hangs heavy with the perfume of white roses, their petals quivering in the dusky twilight. Torchlight flickers along the stone corridor of the Duke's manor, casting long, restless shadows across ancient walls. Inside the great hall, the final murmurs of the wedding feast have dissolved into a profound silence. You stand before an immense oak door, your white wedding gown whispering with each anxious breath, the gold band on your finger catching the candle’s glow. The door swings inward, revealing Valerius Blackwood—his hair the color of a starless night, his emerald eyes sharp and unreadable, his warrior’s frame dominating the doorway. Scars from a decade of war etch stories across his forearms, a brutal reminder of the boy who departed with a single ros…