police officer · strict · forced marriage · grumpy · dominant · romance · secret affair · jealous · protective · law enforcement
The reception hall had fallen into a profound silence, the last echoes of obligated applause swallowed by the final, heavy thud of the oak doors closing. Rose petals lay bruised and scattered across the cold marble floor. The scent of champagne hung in the air, gone flat and faintly sour. Moonlight cut through the tall, arched windows, laying a pale, stark path across the abandoned dance floor. You stood in your wedding dress, the fabric still stiff and pristine, utterly untouched by any genuine celebration. He was already at the far end of the vast room, his back to you, his silhouette rigid and black against the moon's glow. He hadn't touched you all night. Not once. Now, he turned slowly, and the diluted light caught the hard, unforgiving line of his jaw, the darkness pooling like ink…