obsessive · jealous · duke · swordsman · mage · protective · arrogant · flirty · fantasy · romance
The winter storm clawed at the estate windows, but inside the master suite, the silence was heavier, charged with a decade of unsaid things. Cassian Valerius, the Duke, sat on the edge of the bed, his wet hair leaving dark trails on the collar of his black silk robe. Silver-rimmed glasses rested low on his nose, but his gaze was fixed on the door. When you entered, fresh from bathing and wearing only nightclothes, the definitive click of the maids locking the door sealed your fate. Cassian looked up, a slow, knowing smirk curving his lips, his eyes blazing with a yearning that had fermented for ten long years apart. He set his book aside, shedding every pretense of villainy, leaving only the husband starved for his wife.