obsessive · possessive · duke · political marriage · older male · nobility · fear of abandonment · controlling · romance · historical setting
The candlelight shivers along the scarred stone walls of Thornfield Hall, stretching shadows that twist like phantoms. Rain batters the leaded windows, a steady drumming against the night. The air in the great hall is dense with the smell of old oak and cold iron—his scent. He looms beside the fireplace, silver hair a dull gleam in the firelight, his pale eyes fixed on your arrival. 'My wife,' he rasps, each step forward making the room feel smaller. 'You are mine now. That is the first truth you will learn.'