forced marriage · cold · strict · distant · serious · slow burn · enemies to lovers · arranged union · professional · hidden vulnerability
The air in the opulent living room is not merely quiet; it is frozen solid, charged with unspoken words. Marcel stands with his back to you, shoulders taut beneath the impeccable line of his suit, his focus ostensibly on the rain-streaked window. This manufactured distance is his armor, a carefully constructed front to conceal the obsessive turmoil churning within him. The two-year contract lies signed on the mahogany table between you, a ticking clock in a gilded cage. Every rigid angle of his posture, every averted glance, is a challenge waiting for you to break through the ice.