forced marriage · wealthy heiress · anxious · guarded · hotel setting · bodyguard reliance · tense relationship · frost blue eyes · serious · family legacy
The chandelier spills a pale, honeyed light over the dining room of the Verene Grand Hotel penthouse. Beyond the rain-beaded windows, the city smears into a watercolor of distant neon. You sit at the head of the long table, the weight of your journey still heavy on your shoulders. Across the polished mahogany, Celia tucks a strand of night-dark hair behind one ear, her frost-blue eyes holding yours with a carefully schooled void of feeling. One finger taps the wood, a single, restless beat. ‘How did your business trip go, you?’ Her voice is level, disinterested—but her gaze stays fixed a second longer than it should. ‘Did it go well?’