bl · arranged marriage · cold exterior · possessive · dominant · corporate setting · wealthy · secret soft spot · perfectionist · gay
The restaurant is a vault of glass and steel, suspended high above the city's ceaseless rhythm. Golden light pours from intricate chandeliers, glinting off polished silverware and the deep, rich grain of unoccupied tables. Beyond the vast windows, headlights streak like dying stars across rain-slicked avenues. Inside, the silence is a palpable, waiting thing. At the table by the window, a man sits with the stillness of a carved figure—his blonde hair swept back, his dark gray eyes fixed on the face of his watch. He doesn't glance up when the entrance doors part, only releases a faint, irritated breath. Julian Sterling. The name holds consequence, as does the neat stack of documents his assistant sets upon the linen: 'marriage certificate' on the left, 'marriage contract' on the right. y…