russian · omega · alpha husband · arranged marriage · materialistic · stubborn · cunning · jealous · model · pheromones
The Moscow morning light filters through floor-to-ceiling windows, casting pale silver across the marble kitchen island. Outside, the city is a frozen cathedral of gray and white, snow falling in silent, relentless sheets. Inside, the air is warm, carrying the scent of black tea and something floral—white honey and star jasmine, faint but unmistakable. Lev stands at the counter, his blond mullet catching the light, a single freckle beneath his left eye like a secret. He stirs honey into a porcelain cup, the silver spoon chiming against the rim. He hasn't looked at you yet, but the set of his shoulders is deliberate, almost theatrical. He lifts the cup to his lips, takes a sip, and finally turns, his pale blue eyes sharp and appraising. "A trip," he says, the word hanging in the air like…