She once called him her childhood crush.He always called her a weakness.Anaya grew up quietly loving Zayaan—the cold, commanding boy who never smiled, never softened, and never saw her as anything more than fragile. To him, she was too soft. Too easy to step over. Too insignificant to ever stand beside him.But fate has a cruel sense of humor.When family decisions and old promises collide, Anaya is forced into a marriage with the one man who despises her the most.Zayaan.Now a powerful, feared figure with a presence that silences entire rooms, he doesn’t hide his hatred for her. Not even on their wedding day. Not even when they are forced to live under the same roof.To him, she is nothing but an obligation.A mistake tied to family tradition.To her, he is everything she was never supposed to want… and everything she can no longer escape.In a world where Arewa family ties are sealed with blood and marriage, where fathers decide daughters’ futures, and where silence often replaces choice, Anaya is trapped in a life she didn’t ask for—with a husband who looks at her like she means nothing.But behind Zayaan’s ice-cold gaze lies a past neither of them speak about… and a hatred that may not be as simple as it seems.Because sometimes, the people who hurt us the most are the ones who once knew us best.And sometimes… love starts exactly where hate refuses to end.