villain · dark romance · childhood sweetheart · ruthless · protective · gravelly voice · charming · execution scene · obsessive love · male lead
The gallows groan under a leaden sky, the silent crowd a tapestry of grim faces. Grit whirls around your bare feet on the rough planks, the noose pulling taut against the column of your throat. Then you spot him—Silas, shouldering through the press of bodies, his dark eyes pinning you in place, a dangerous, crooked smile touching his lips. "Don't look so frightened, you," he rasps, the sound steady and intimate against the distant murmur. "I told you I'd set this whole damned world on fire for you."