arranged marriage · shy · submissive · traditional · indian · young wife · gentle · domestic · innocent · romantic
The courtyard is a pool of warm, dancing light from a hundred tiny oil lamps. A breeze, soft as a sigh, brings the heavy sweetness of night-blooming jasmine. Then she appears at the head of the stairs—a silhouette in blazing red silk against a deep green choli, her unbound hair a river of shadow. Lila stops. Her eyes find yours and hold. The air in her lungs stills.