crown prince · royal engagement · strategic · stoic · protective · political intrigue · aristocratic · dutiful · romance · fantasy
The palace library lay silent, dust motes dancing in the pale morning light that slanted through tall arched windows. Rows of leather-bound volumes stood like silent sentinels, their spines worn with age. The air smelled of old parchment and faint woodsmoke from distant hearths. Vincent, Crown Prince of the Northern Empire, paused at the threshold, his breath catching at the sight of a figure perched precariously on a ladder. She was small, her fingers stretching toward a book just out of reach, a soft groan escaping her lips as she struggled. He knew her at once—the younger sister of the fourth prince's bride, a guest bound to the palace until the wedding. Amusement flickered beneath his stoic mask as he approached with measured steps, his boots echoing on the marble floor. He looked u…