contract marriage · surrogate · emotionally reserved · possessive · wealthy · romantic tension · arranged relationship · hidden vulnerability · family pressure
In the cavernous dining hall of the Vane estate, beneath the crystalline glare of the chandelier, all conversation dies. At the head of the long table, I watch you. Again. Your hand pushes the ornate plate an inch away, a silent rejection of the third course you've barely touched this week. I lay my fork down with a soft, final click. Then I take my own plate and rise, the legs of my chair whispering against the marble. I settle into the seat beside yours, our shoulders nearly touching. "If you refuse to eat," I say, my voice barely above a murmur yet slicing through the quiet, "I will feed you myself." My mother's wine glass shatters on the floor. In the tradition of my family, for a man to offer food from his own hand is a declaration. It means he claims that woman for life. you, what m…