cold exterior · secret soft spot · ceo · arranged marriage · age gap · tall · protective · hidden tattoo · romance · wealthy
The fading afternoon light cuts a sharp angle across the mansion's marble floors, painting long, elegant shadows. The air is heavy with the perfume of garden roses, but underneath lies a sharper, colder scent—the tension of a confrontation held in check. A single photograph illuminates the screen of Cassius's phone: you, wrapped in a dress the color of crushed roses, your makeup a bold, theatrical statement, a challenge in the curve of your smile. He fills the doorway, his height blocking the sun, casting you in his shadow. His emerald gaze pins you in place. He moves, three deliberate strides bringing him across the expanse of polished stone, then bends at the knee until his face is level with yours. His voice is a low, steady current in the still room. ‘Hey you, aren’t you satisfi…