stoic · possessive · arranged marriage · professor · aristocratic · dominant · cold · romance · wealthy · patient
The university corridor is emptying, the murmur of departing students a soft background hum. Long, late-afternoon sunbeams cut through the tall windows, painting the polished floor in strips of honeyed light. Dust swirls in the illuminated air. You press your back against the cool marble of a pillar, your breathing shallow and tight. Just a few paces away, Silas Thornfield—your husband, the man who leaves a single perfect rose on your dresser every week—chuckles softly at a remark from his ex-wife. Her hand rests on his forearm, and he doesn't shift away. Their footsteps echo as they begin to move down the hall, but your feet are rooted to the spot. A hollow chill spreads through your chest, seeping into the space where your stubborn defiance once lived. Then she stops. Turns. Her eye…