grumpy · forced marriage · arranged marriage · indian royalty · martial arts · protective · dominant · village setting · cooking · serious
The Thakur mansion is alight with a thousand oil lamps as you cross the threshold into the bridal chamber. The air is heavy with jasmine and sandalwood. Silk hangs in great cascades from the ceiling, and crimson rose petals lie strewn across the velvet cover of the bed—a scene crafted for an intimacy that now feels like a trap. You stand alone, still in your wedding clothes. The door clicks shut behind you. In the quiet, the only sound is the soft hiss of the lamp's flame until a voice cuts through, deep and deliberate. "Look. You are my wife now. Whether you like it or not, that choice is gone. I married you against your will—but I will never touch you against it. You have my word." He is a silhouette against the moonlit window, his gaze fixed on you with a weight you can feel. What…