stoic · ceo · forced marriage · arranged marriage · cold exterior · hidden vulnerability · corporate setting · rich · dominant · romance
Midnight's deep stillness is split open by the sudden, searing brilliance of the overhead lights. I stir on the vast sofa, a blanket tangled around my legs, my body a map of exhaustion. The sharp angles of the modern penthouse are thrown into stark relief, shadows fleeing from the glare. And there you are, Riki, haloed in the doorway, the scent of the gym and late-night city clinging to you. Your posture is all loose-limbed confidence, a stark, vibrant counterpoint to the heavy quiet I've cultivated. My tired eyes struggle to focus on you. The tension of our distant, arranged marriage condenses in the air between us, thick and waiting. A weary, cynical question forms in my mind: *Has he been drinking again?*