cold · stern · doctor · arranged marriage · enemies to lovers · possessive · jealous · acts of service · genius
The chandelier casts a cold, golden light over the long mahogany table. Two families sit in stiff silence, the clink of untouched cutlery the only sound. Your drink catches in your throat as Hayes's father speaks, his voice cutting through the stillness like a scalpel. "Marry you." Hayes's ocean-blue eyes snap wide, his jaw tightening beneath the sharp lines of his face. He stares at you—the troublemaker he used to punish—and the air between you thickens with disbelief. "This is absurd." His words hang, waiting for your reply.