The noise had faded. The guests were gone. The private island returned to its quiet night, with only the waves tirelessly crashing against the shore—mocking the absurd spectacle of the day.
Emma and Gu Liang were assigned the island's most luxurious villa suite, their so-called "wedding night" love nest.
Emma stood before the grand double doors, carved with intricate patterns, her feet heavy as lead. Behind the door was her nominal Omega husband—and the man who had cornered her into this marriage. Behind the door was a night destined to be humiliating.
She inhaled the salty sea breeze, trying to suppress the nausea rising in her throat. Then she pushed the door open.
The suite was vast and opulent. Plush carpets, floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking a private pool and endless ocean. The air was laced with a refined, deliberately blended fragrance—designed to mask something more real.
Gu Liang was already inside.
He stood with his back to her, gazing out at the dark sea. He had changed out of his wedding suit into a deep blue silk robe, loosely tied, revealing his elegant collarbones and a glimpse of pale chest. His hair was damp—he had just showered.
He didn't turn around when he heard the door.
Emma closed it behind her. The heavy sound echoed through the empty suite. She stood at the entrance, unmoving—like an intruder in someone else's territory.
His white tea pheromones were faint but unmistakable. Clean, post-shower, and icy. Her own cedar whiskey scent was restless, intrusive—like a brute crashing into a quiet garden.
"The master bedroom is on the left," Gu Liang said at last, his voice calm, still facing the window. "It has a private bath and dressing room."
Emma hesitated, then glanced at the half-open door to the left.
"I'll be staying on the right," he continued, tone flat, like assigning hotel rooms. "Unless necessary, do not enter my room. And do not disturb me."
He spoke so naturally, so matter-of-factly, as if they weren't newlyweds but strangers sharing a rental. No—less than strangers.
Emma's chest burned with the rage and humiliation she'd been suppressing all day.
"Gu Liang!" she rasped. "What do you want from me?! We did what you asked—we're married! What more do you want?!"
Gu Liang turned slowly.
Fresh from the shower, his skin glowed faintly. His features were sharper than ever. But his eyes—those eyes—were still glacial. He looked at her flushed face without emotion.
"What do I want?" he repeated, lips curling into a faint, mocking smile. "Ms. Ai, it's you and your company who need me—not the other way around. This marriage is the shelter you begged for. I suggest you remember your place."
His words stabbed like poisoned ice.
"As for what I expect…" He stepped closer, stopping a few feet away, eyes scanning her like evaluating a product. "Simple. Fulfill your duties as a 'husband.' Maintain the illusion of harmony. Ensure Ai Group remains tightly bound to First Heart Capital. Beyond that, I don't need you. And I don't want you interfering in my life."
"Duties? What duties?" Emma asked warily. The mark made her want to approach—but his coldness made her recoil.
Gu Liang found her question amusing. He chuckled softly. "For example, playing the loving couple in public. And keeping your pheromones 'loyal.' During the contract period, I don't want to smell any disgusting Omega scent on you that isn't mine. It affects my mood. And our shared assets."
He paused, then added with quiet menace, "The contract spells out the consequences. I doubt you want to test them."
Emma's face went pale. That contract—those brutal terms—wrapped around her like chains.
"As for everything else…" His gaze flicked toward the oversized bed with red sheets. No warmth. No desire. Just ice. "I'm not interested in you. What happened during rut—I suggest you forget it. It was a mistake. A disgusting one."
Disgusting.
The word sliced into Emma's deepest wound. And twisted.
She opened her mouth to protest, to scream—but found no words. His contempt was complete. He had stripped her of choice, trampled her dignity, and now denied even the last shred of intimacy they once shared.
He called that night a mistake. And her—repulsive.
Emma felt naked, thrown into a frozen wasteland, exposed to a slow, merciless death.
Gu Liang turned away, heading to the right bedroom.
"Flight leaves at nine tomorrow. Don't be late."
He opened the door, stepped inside, and shut it behind him.
Click.
The lock echoed through the suite.
Just like all the other times—he had shut her out.
Only now, they were bound by a ridiculous marriage certificate.
Emma stood alone in the lavish, lifeless living room. She looked at the closed door. Then at the master bedroom assigned to her.
No joy. No intimacy. Only cold transactions, searing hatred, and suffocating silence.
She walked to the master bedroom and opened the door.
It was spacious. Comfortable. Fresh roses on the nightstand. But it all felt like stage decor—fake, laughable.
This wasn't a love nest. It was a cage. A prison Gu Liang had built with money and power.
And she was its only, permanent inmate.
Emma collapsed onto the soft carpet, leaning against the cold bedframe, burying her face in her knees.
Outside, the waves kept crashing.
Inside her world—only darkness remained. And the lingering chill of his kiss.
On their wedding night, her Omega husband sealed her fate with a locked door and a few cold words.
And her life… Had entered a new, hopeless chapter.