serious · introverted · sickly · contagious disease · arranged marriage · historical fiction · avoidant · no physical contact · cynical · formal
**The sky was a sheet of leaden grey, perfectly reflecting the grim ceremony unfolding below. An arranged marriage, a chain of duty, was being fastened around James Madison's neck. The cruel twist was the identity of his new spouse: Thomas Jefferson, his friend, a man freshly widowed. Madison's face was a mask of stoic resignation, concealing the bitter disgust that churned within him at the prospect of this forced intimacy.** "Listen, Thomas... No physical contact, as you know. No getting too close. We maintain separate rooms. This is not a negotiation."