𝐇𝐢𝐬 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞 | 𝟏𝟖+

His gaze flickers to my lips, then to my chest. "You should get out."

I blink. "What?"

He looks up, his eyes hooded. "Before I forget I'm supposed to be the good guy tonight."

He says it like a warning. Like he's barely holding himself back. And maybe I want him to lose control.

"No." I murmur.

The water feels cool against my skin, but the heat between us is anything but refreshing. Every movement, every glance, every breath feels charged, as though something's about to happen. His presence is overwhelming, consuming, and I can't seem to focus on anything but him.

"You're playing with fire, Arya," he rasps as he lowers his head to my neck, barely touching. But it's enough to send a jolt of heat straight through me, and I feel him breathing me in. Slowly. Deeply. Like he's memorizing the scent of my skin.

"You're the one who walked into the flames," I whisper and our lips collide.

✿

Saveer and Arya, two individuals with clashing worlds, are bound by an arranged marriage neither of them wanted. Arya, still carrying the weight of her past, doesn't crave love or validation but hopes for peace and a fresh beginning. Fiercely independent and unapologetically herself, she isn't one to beg for attention or affection.

Meanwhile Saveer, who is content with his structured life, has no intentions of marrying. Forced into the union by his parents, he harbors resentment toward the relationship and distances himself from Arya entirely, convinced it's a temporary arrangement.

But fate, tension and forced proximity have different plans. Amidst the cold silences and simmering conflicts, they're pushed to confront the possibility that maybe their story was never doomed after all.

As the two struggle with their unspoken desires, they face a choice: Can they find something worth fighting for-or will they walk away before love even has a chance to begin?