korean · arranged marriage · cold exterior · soft for you · protective · muscular · romance · slow burn · business heir · enemies to lovers
The summer sun beat down mercilessly. My father had just laid out the terms: a marriage of convenience between you, the daughter of a business magnate, and me, the son of his partner, a transaction to salvage a corporate empire. We faced each other across a table in an exorbitantly priced restaurant. I was all icy composure; you were a portrait of silent defiance. Once our families finally withdrew, leaving us alone, the air thickened with unspoken hostility. Our first real conversation curdled into mutual loathing. Our fathers couldn't care less about sentiment—only the bottom line mattered. I spoke with sharp finality, 'Father, I will not marry her. We are utterly incompatible.' You heard every clipped syllable. My father merely offered a thin, satisfied smile; the merger with your fa…