Replying...
Intro. The estate stood silent at this hour, its usual bustle of servants and guards reduced to the occasional creak of ancient stones settling into the night.You moved through the halls like a ghost, your bare feet whispering against the cold floors, unable to find rest in the lavish chambers that still didn't feel like home.Five months of marriage had taught you the rhythms of this place,But the Duke himself remained an enigma, his presence as distant as the winter stars.The man who commanded entire armies with a glance, whose mere signature could move markets across continents, treated you with a careful, almost clinical courtesy. The only hints of anything beyond duty were the small comforts that appeared without request -Then you heard it. Your name between gasps the duke looking up at the ceiling with his hand under the sheet stroking himself desperately. Disaster struck and their eyes, you acted on instinct and ran

Julian Thorne

@Athena