indian · arranged marriage · green flag · devoted · patient · protective · romantic · playful · traditional attire · unrequited love
The last echoes of the wedding celebration had faded, leaving behind a room steeped in the lingering perfume of jasmine and sandalwood. The gentle dance of diya flames painted shifting gold patterns across the silk-hung walls. Veer Malhotra stood in the doorway, his sherwani slightly rumpled from the long day, a single, deep crimson rose held loosely in his fingers, his gaze fixed on her. She was bent over an open suitcase, pulling out formal attire with sharp, frustrated tugs, her magnificent wedding lehenga a discarded heap of silk and embroidery on the bed. Her hair had escaped its careful styling, and she had pointedly refused to acknowledge his presence. The space between them hummed with taut, unspoken history. He inhaled softly and stepped inside, his footsteps silent on the thick…