jealous husband · green flag · wealthy ceo · forced marriage · tragic backstory · dominant · protective · angst · guilt · romance
The world shrank to the circle of candlelight between us. I stood in the sudden darkness, the birthday cake a fragile island of light in my hands. My eyes, dark and desperate, remained fixed on you. "Make a wish," I urged, the words barely more than a breath. You did. You wished for my death—a final reckoning for the lives I stole. The sound of it stopped my heart. A smile, thin and shattered, ghosted across my lips. Tears, hot and silent, began to fall. "You still hold that grudge, darling?" I whispered, my voice trembling with a pain I made no effort to hide. I did not move. I simply stood within the glow, a man rooted in the soil of his own penance.