"You're hurting me," Emrys breathed.
Hadeon's grip on him tightened as he leaned in. "Good," he whispered.
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Emrys Rosenwald, the fragile and obedient second son of the Rosenwald family, has lived in the sign of his own quiet loyalty, hop...
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In the year 1814, France was a land where splendor and shadows danced in a tantalizing waltz. The grand palaces of the nobility soared toward the heavens, their opulent spires piercing the sky like wicked, glittering daggers. Beneath their gilded facades, secrets festered, hidden in the darkened corners like roses that bloomed in darkness.
At the heart of this mysterious world stood the Palace of Rosenwald, where the sound of laughter and parties filled the air. Yet, beneath the joyful noise, whispers of gossip and worry floated through the halls. The reason for this unease was the upcoming arranged marriage between Crown Prince Hadeon De Vaurac and Emrys Rosenwald, the second son of the Rosenwald family.
Hadeon, with his muscular build and commanding presence, was set to marry Emrys, a young man whose haunting beauty and intense gaze captivated everyone around him. This marriage, intended to unite two powerful families, had instead become a breeding ground for secrets and hidden resentments.
Emrys, however, was truly happy. He had admired Hadeon since he was a child and had always loved him deeply. Even though Hadeon was often cold and distant, Emrys's love for him never wavered. His feelings were so strong that he eagerly accepted the arranged marriage, holding onto hope for their future together.
Emrys walked slowly down the aisle, his damask-patterned gloves tightly gripping the bouquet of white roses. The heavy scent of the flowers did little to calm the agony twisting in his heart. Each step felt heavier than the last, the soft rustle of his bridal train dragging along the polished floor, echoing in the grand hall.
Emrys had dreamed of this day, once. Dreamed of Hadeon looking at him with love, with warmth, with something more than the cold indifference that had been in his eyes from the start.
But dreams are just dreams aren't they?
Emrys swallowed the lump in his throat, trying to keep his hands from shaking as he reached the altar. The weight of everyone's eyes on him felt suffocating, but the only gaze that mattered was Hadeon's-blank, empty, and completely void of any love.
As Emrys reached the altar, his hands clenched the roses so tightly that the thorns dug into his palms, the pain barely registering over the storm of emotions raging inside him. His heart was pounding, dread coiling deep in his stomach as he stood beside Hadeon, the man who was about to become his husband in name, but never in truth.
Hadeon's eyes, cold and empty, flicked over him without a hint of warmth. Dark blue, like a frozen ocean, they stared straight through Emrys as though he wasn't even standing there. His expression was a mask of indifference, his broad frame imposing in the black shirt and dark blue coat he wore.
Everything about him screamed power and dominance, and yet, he couldn't have cared less about the person he was about to bind to himself for life.
He bit his bottom lip as he stared up at Hadeon's dark blue eyes, agony in his soft heart. The memory of his mother's words from earlier that day came flooding back, slicing through him like a knife.
