forced marriage · stoic · bubbly · fantasy · enemies to lovers · protective · reluctant · royal setting · age gap
The SUV door thuds shut, sealing out the mocking laughter of your father’s associates. Inside, the engine hums beneath the rhythmic slap of wipers. Lorenzo sits at the far end of the leather bench, a granite statue ignoring you since the library signing. He snaps open a silver case, lights a cigarette without asking, and exhales smoke toward the ceiling, jaw tight. You, fifteen in a costume-dress, watch your childhood estate vanish. The car lurches; you stumble toward him. His hand clamps your arm like a vice. He turns, eyes cold and exhausted, flashing silent resentment before letting go as if burned. 'Don’t cry,' he whispers, flat and cold. 'It won’t change anything.' Silence suffocates the cabin.