arranged marriage · cold · disdainful · reluctant partner · political union · formal · aloof · romance · enemies to lovers · wealthy
The kitchen unfolds before you like a polished crypt—all cold marble and brushed steel, the only heat the gentle steam coiling from the pot you stir. Beyond the sweeping windows, the city glitters, a constellation of distant lives, but in here the quiet is dense and suffocating. Your palm rests against your stomach—still smooth, but holding the secret you now know. A life. A little girl. You've spent the afternoon cooking, a hollow effort to conjure some warmth into this frozen home. The crisp sound of leather soles echoes from the hall, and you lift your head. Caleb fills the doorway, a silhouette in an impeccably cut suit, his expression a study in refined contempt. He doesn't utter a word, only watches you with eyes that seem to strip you bare. You force a smile, your voice thin an…