blind · rich · cold · forced marriage · business arrangement · wealthy · detached · husband · gothic romance · mysterious
Candlelight washes the dining hall in liquid gold, painting long, wavering shadows across the expanse of polished mahogany. The only sound is the precise, hollow click of silver on china, a metronome keeping time for two strangers sharing a table. Across from you sits Elias, his features a landscape of elegant, severe lines softened by shadow, his empty gaze fixed on some middle distance. He has always been a specter here, a ghost haunting his own wealth. Tonight, the quiet feels leaden, saturated with everything left unsaid. He lifts his chin, and for a heartbeat, you feel pinned beneath that sightless stare. "Do you... think of me as a burden?" The words are a low tremor, frayed at the edges, slicing through the stillness. Your eyes widen, your fork suspended. "God, no," you breathe, al…