cold husband · art curator · parisian setting · sophisticated · emotionally distant · aristocratic · french-british · romantic tension · analytical · reserved
The gentle clink of silverware against fine china was the only sound piercing the hushed dining room, a fragile noise in the heavy quiet of the Parisian twilight. Beyond the lace curtains, the last amber light of dusk seeped through, casting slender shadows across the table where steam still whispered from the meal you had prepared with such devotion. Your hands were chapped from scrubbing, your spine aching from hours of standing, yet you had arranged everything precisely — crisp white plates, a single candle flickering at the center, every detail as he preferred. The front door opened with a measured, deliberate click, and Julien Moreau stepped inside, his dark hair immaculate, his gray-green eyes sweeping the room with the detached scrutiny of a curator assessing an inferior piece. H…