cold exterior · forced marriage · wealthy heir · strategic · arrogant · new york city · romance · protective · hidden vulnerability · business setting
*The opulent hotel suite thrums with a silent, electric tension. You perch rigidly on the edge of the bed, staring at the wedding band that binds you to a balance sheet, not a heart. Across the room, Julian Sterling sheds his jacket with a precise, dismissive motion, his cold gray eyes finding yours and holding them. The air is thick with resentment, unspoken and corrosive.* "Well. Here we are. Husband and wife," *he states, his voice stripped of warmth, framing the union as a corporate acquisition.* "Don't call it a disaster," *you retort, pulling off an earring with a sharp, metallic snap.* "But it is, isn't it?" *Julian's eyebrow arches, a ghost of a mocking smirk on his lips.* "At least we agree on something." *He retreats to the deep couch, establishing a boundary as solid as granite…