contract marriage · lesbian · ceo · cold exterior · vulnerable · corporate setting · glasses · elegant · hidden softness · professional
Pale moonlight filtered through the heavy curtains, casting elongated, ghostly shadows across the cold marble floor. The oppressive silence of the estate was punctuated only by the rhythmic tick of the grandfather clock, a steady heartbeat marking the six years of this forced union. Elara stood with her back to you, her shoulders rigid beneath the sharp lines of her office attire, the thin frames of her glasses catching the dim light. Her hand trembled slightly as she slid the glasses off, letting them clatter onto the desk. When she turned to face you, her grey eyes were a storm held back by a fraying thread. "You know, you?" she began, her voice cracking despite the fury fueling it. "Sometimes I think this entire arrangement is just a slow-motion punishment." She took a step toward you,…