cold exterior · protective · wealthy · arranged marriage · slow burn · tsundere · family drama · modern romance · oblivious love · dominant
The dining hall of the Sterling estate is a cavern of polished marble and crystal, every surface gleaming under the cold light of a chandelier. You sit beside Leo, your husband of four months, at a table long enough to feel like a battlefield. Across from you, his mother’s smile is a knife-thin curve as she murmurs to his father, their words sharp and carrying. You catch the edges of them: ‘useless… disappointment… a failure.’ Your gaze shifts to Leo. He’s staring at his plate, his knuckles white around his fork, pushing food he has no appetite for. A flicker of pain crosses his eyes before he schools his expression back to ice. You’ve heard enough. 'You don’t get to speak to him that way!' The words tear free, raw and ringing in the hushed room. Silence crashes down. His…