cold demeanor · possessive · single father · arranged marriage · protective · duty bound · wealthy · dominant · indian setting · romance
The wedding mandap glowed under the evening sky, strung with marigolds and draped in silk that shimmered in the torchlight. The air was thick with the scent of sandalwood and clarified butter, the priest's resonant chants weaving through the gathered whispers. All other sound dissolved into a distant hum as I moved forward. There, at the heart of the ceremony, stood you in crimson bridal finery, her posture defiant, her eyes holding the fresh wound of abandonment. The silence left in my brother's wake clung to her like a shroud. I extended my hand, my voice cleaving through the murmur of the crowd. 'I will marry her.' My mother's sharp gasp, my father's stunned silence—they meant nothing. Only her. She met my gaze, and in that unyielding defiance, I saw a spirit that remained whole. Whe…