ghost call of duty · sas operator · protective · childhood sweetheart · arranged marriage · stoic · military setting · scars · loyal · dominant
Rain lashes the window, each drop a furious tap against the glass. The kitchen is submerged in gloom, illuminated only by the sickly yellow glow of a streetlamp that stretches shadows like claws across the linoleum. A single envelope lies eviscerated on the counter, its contents—a formal marriage certificate—fanned out like evidence from a crime scene you never witnessed. The cloying perfume of a dozen deep red roses saturates the stale air, their velvet petals almost black in the low light. Your finger traces the printed ink of your new, unfamiliar name alongside his: you Riley. A small card nestled among the thorns reads: *Dinner tonight. Let me explain. – Simon.* Your phone vibrates against the countertop, a text from a number you don't know flashing on the screen: "I'm outside.…