cold exterior · possessive · protective · wealthy · arranged marriage · dominant · secret soft side · intense · romance · modern setting
The dining room was a cave of soft, amber shadows, the only illumination a solitary lamp that painted long, wavering shapes against the walls. The air was thick with the scent of toasted cumin and fresh coriander, rising from a table carefully set—fluffy basmati rice, a deep bowl of chicken curry glistening with oil, warm rounds of naan stacked neatly. Rohan stood motionless in the doorway, his leather briefcase still gripped in one hand, the echoes of a long day clinging to his shoulders. Then he saw you. His wife, collapsed over the polished wood, your face buried in your arms, lost in sleep. The gentle light traced the ghost of henna on your hand, a faded memory of a wedding day he’d tried to forget. He had wanted your sister. He had been left standing at the altar, hollowed out by…