Married To A Stranger

Chapter 3

Shaina’s Point of View

Silence filled the room, stretching between us like an invisible barrier. I stood near the door, my fingers tightening around the fabric of my dress. My heart pounded so loudly that I was sure he could hear it.

The man in front of me was nothing like the rumors suggested.

He wasn’t disfigured. He wasn’t monstrous. If anything, he looked like someone carved straight out of marble—sharp jawline, high cheekbones, and deep-set eyes that held no warmth. But there was something unnerving about him. He wasn’t just handsome; he was unreadable, like a closed book with pages I wasn’t meant to see.

I swallowed hard, trying to steady my breath. This was the man I was going to marry.

He leaned against the edge of his desk, arms crossed, his gaze locked onto mine. The air between us was thick with something I couldn’t name—tension, uncertainty, maybe even resentment.

"You’re trembling," he observed, his voice calm yet distant.

I straightened my back, willing myself to appear composed. "I—I'm just…" My voice faltered. What was I supposed to say? That I was terrified? That I had no idea what I was doing here?

Instead, I forced my words to be firm. "I wasn’t given a choice."

His expression didn’t change, but something in his eyes flickered. "Neither was I."

I blinked, momentarily caught off guard.

For some reason, I had assumed he had wanted this—that he had agreed to the marriage willingly. But his tone was devoid of excitement, annoyance, or even hesitation. It was as if this entire arrangement was just another transaction to him.

"You don’t seem surprised to see me," I said cautiously.

He let out a quiet exhale and pushed himself off the desk, taking a slow step toward me. Even though he wasn’t close enough to touch me, his presence was overwhelming.

"I knew you’d come," he said simply. "There was never another option for you, was there?"

His words settled heavily in my chest.

No, there wasn’t.

I had begged my mother not to make me go through with this, pleaded for her to find another way to save the company. But in the end, my signature had ended up on that contract. My fate had already been sealed long before I even arrived at this mansion.

I forced myself to meet his gaze. "And you? Did you want this?"

He tilted his head slightly, as if considering my question. Then, with the faintest smirk, he replied, "Want? No. But my family expects it."

His voice was unreadable, but there was something in his words that struck me.

I had thought I was the only one being forced into this marriage, but now I wasn’t so sure. Was he just as much a pawn in this arrangement as I was?

I shifted uncomfortably, feeling even more uncertain about the man standing before me. "So we’re both just… stuck in this," I murmured.

He let out a soft chuckle, but there was no humor in it. "Looks like it."

The weight of the situation pressed down on me. This wasn’t just about saving my mother’s family business. This wasn’t just about me being pushed into a marriage I didn’t want.

This was about two strangers being bound together by forces beyond their control.

I exhaled slowly, unsure of what else to say. The silence stretched between us again, heavy and suffocating.

After a long moment, I cleared my throat. "At the very least," I said, voice softer than before, "I should know your name."

His gaze flickered, something unreadable passing through his eyes before he turned away, walking toward the window.

For a moment, I thought he was going to ignore my question.

Then, just as the silence became unbearable, he finally spoke.

"Cloud."

The name drifted through the air, calm yet unsettling.

I frowned slightly. "Cloud?" I repeated, as if saying it out loud would make it less strange.

He didn’t turn to face me. His hands were tucked into his pockets, his posture relaxed yet distant. "That’s what you’ll call me," he said simply.

Something about the way he said it made me hesitate. It was as if he was offering me a name, but not necessarily his name.

I wanted to ask more, but the look in his eyes when he finally turned back made me stop. There was no point. He wasn’t going to tell me anything else.

Cloud.

My husband.

A man shrouded in mystery.

I had no idea what kind of person I had just married.

And that terrified me more than anything.