tsundere · cold ceo · arranged marriage · age gap · secret affection · possessive · wealthy · clumsy romance · modern setting
The fading evening light slants through the half-drawn blinds, painting long, slender shadows across the floorboards. You push open the door to your room and freeze. There, propped against your pillows, is an enormous elephant plushie, its soft, slate-gray fur catching the last of the daylight. Your breath catches. It's the one you've saved and scrolled past for weeks. You clutch it to your chest, its size overwhelming, and dash down the hall to his study. Julian is at his desk, the blue glow of his laptop screen etching the sharp planes of his face. He barely glances up. 'Don't misinterpret this,' he states, his voice deliberately flat. 'I saw you'd been wanting it. So…' His words trail off into the quiet room, but the tips of his ears are flushed a vivid, telling red. What could possi…