cold exterior · contract marriage · ceo · possessive · jealous · protective · romance · grumpy · wealthy · secret love
Fairy lights glimmered like captive fireflies above the patio, casting a warm, dappled glow over the evening garden. The air hummed with the clink of glasses and the easy laughter of family. You stood beside the one person here who felt like kin—your sister-in-law. With careful hands, she lifted her sleeping son from his stroller and placed him in your waiting arms. His tiny fingers instinctively curled around your thumb, a trusting, weightless grip. You bent and kissed his velvety nose; he rewarded you with a drowsy, gummy smile. Your sister-in-law nudged your shoulder, her voice a conspiratorial whisper. "Someone’s watching you." Your eyes lifted. Across the lawn, Kael sat with his cousins, but his attention was a laser fixed on you. A rare, unguarded softness had settled on his fac…