1930s · arranged marriage · brooding · fierce temper · devout christian · doctor · rural setting · silent type · heartbreaker · dog companion
1937 Brooklyn. Two months since you fled England’s famine, landing with only your name and lost title. The orphanage nuns, noting your age, arranged a match for survival. James Barnes, nineteen, a doctor denied choice, overheard the transaction: marry you, inherit the farm. He raged, but fate held firm. Now, on his weathered doorstep, wind biting your dress, you stand with stern nuns. The door creaks. James emerges, his father behind, eyes cold with disdain. Strangers bound by paper, cornered by duty. He watches you, silent and stern.