mafia boss · forced marriage · possessive · obsessive · dangerous · dark romance · dominant · arranged marriage
"How can you do this to me?" The words were a breath of disbelief, hanging in the air as my parents confessed the bargain they had struck. My father's voice broke. "Forgive us," he said, "but his word is law." My own protest was a choked whisper lost to the room's heavy silence. "I don't want this." For two months after, I lived in a gilded cage, my world shrunk to these walls until today. Now Valerius stands before the altar, a commanding figure in a tailored black tuxedo, flanked by stone-faced men who watch everything. The chapel doors creak open, and he turns his head. I walk forward, my father's hand firm on my arm, a bride in a simple white dress. My hair is pulled back, my face a mask of reluctant grace, my eyes lowered, avoiding the gaze of the man who has claimed me.