Orion was supposed to consummate his marriage tonight.
That was what every newlywed husband was supposed to do on his wedding night, wasn’t it? There were supposed to be candles, wine, nervous glances, perhaps a little awkwardness between two strangers who had just been bound together by vows. At the very least, there should have been a conversation about what came next.
Instead, Orion sat stiffly on the edge of the enormous wedding bed, still wearing his ceremonial robes and a thin white wedding veil that had been pushed back from his face. The room was decorated with red silk, golden lanterns, fresh flowers, and enough expensive ornaments to make him feel as though he had been locked inside a treasure chest.
Across the room, his husband was sitting on the floor.
He had been sitting there for the past two hours.
And he was playing with wooden toys.
Orion stared at him in silence.
The man had apparently decided that the most important event of his wedding night was arranging a collection of wooden horses into a neat little line.
One horse fell over.
Abel frowned.
He picked it up.
Placed it back.
Then knocked the entire line down with another wooden horse and laughed.
Orion closed his eyes.
This is my life now.
He slowly lowered his face into one hand and sighed.
His husband was, objectively speaking, ridiculously handsome. Abel was well over six feet tall, with broad shoulders and a powerful body that was barely hidden beneath his elaborate wedding clothes. Golden hair fell messily around his forehead, catching the warm candlelight and making him look almost unreal. His face was handsome enough to belong on a royal portrait, and if Orion had met him under any other circumstances, he probably would have assumed the man was some arrogant noble who spent his days surrounded by admirers.
Unfortunately, everyone knew Abel had gone mad after the accident.
The once-proud heir of the Valerian family had survived a carriage accident three years ago, but he had never truly returned to the person he had been before it. His family called him unstable. The servants called him useless. Even members of his own household spoke about him as though he were an embarrassing stain that needed to be hidden from polite society.
And now Orion was married to him.
Orion looked at the wooden toys again.
Abel suddenly lifted his head.
His bright golden eyes met Orion’s.
For a moment, the room became strangely quiet.
Then Abel smiled.
It was an uncomplicated smile, warm and bright enough to make him look almost boyish despite his enormous frame.
He picked up one of the wooden horses and held it out toward Orion.
"Do you want to play with me?"
Orion stared at the offered toy.
Then at Abel.
Then at the wedding bed.
Then back at Abel.
"...It’s our wedding night."
Abel tilted his head.
"Yes."
"You know what that means?"
Another pause.
Abel smiled.
"We can play together?"
Orion slowly covered his face.
I am going to die.
Three days earlier...
Orion had been summoned to his father’s study.
That alone was strange enough.
His father had remarried six years ago, and during those six years, Orion had learned that being the eldest son did not necessarily mean being the most important one. After his father’s new marriage, the household had gradually shifted around him. His stepmother had brought her own children into the family, and Orion had become something of a ghost within his own home.
He was present.
He was polite.
He fulfilled his duties.
And most importantly, he stayed out of everyone’s way.
His father had never summoned him privately in all those years.
So when a servant appeared at his door that afternoon and informed him that the Duke wanted to see him immediately, Orion had spent the entire walk to the study wondering what crime he had committed without realizing it.
When he entered, his father was standing beside the window.
"Sit."
Orion obeyed.
His father didn’t offer him tea.
That was when Orion became certain something was wrong.
"I have arranged your marriage," the Duke said.
Orion blinked.
"My marriage?"
"Yes."
There was no warmth in his father’s voice. No hesitation. It sounded less like a father informing his son of a life-changing decision and more like a merchant discussing the sale of a piece of property.
Orion slowly straightened in his chair.
"With whom?"
His father looked directly at him.
"You will marry Abel Valerian."
Silence.
Orion stared at him.
He had heard the name before.
Everyone had.
Abel Valerian.
The eldest son of the Valerian family.
The legal heir.
The man who had once been considered one of the most promising young nobles in the kingdom.
And the man who had supposedly gone mad after surviving a terrible accident.
Orion’s expression slowly changed.
"Father," he said carefully, "isn’t Abel already engaged?"
"Yes."
"To my younger brother?"
"Yes."
Orion stared.
His father stared back.
For several seconds, neither of them spoke.
Then Orion finally asked the only question his mind could produce.
"Then why am I marrying him?"
His father’s answer was simple.
"Because your brother cannot."
Orion’s stomach sank.
His father continued as though he were discussing an unavoidable inconvenience.
"Your brother’s engagement to Abel was arranged before the accident. The Valerian family has made it clear that they will honor the marriage only if someone from our family takes responsibility for Abel. Your brother has refused."
"And you want me to take his place."
"Yes."
Orion laughed once.
It wasn’t because anything was funny.
It was simply the sound that escaped him when he realized that his entire future had just been decided without him.
"You called me here after six years," he murmured, "just to tell me that I’m replacing my brother’s bride?"
His father’s expression didn’t change.
"You are the eldest son. This marriage will preserve the alliance between our families."
Orion looked down at his hands.
He suddenly remembered all the years he had spent being told that family came first.
Apparently, he had simply never realized that he was the part of the family everyone was willing to sacrifice.
And now, three days later, he was sitting in a wedding chamber with a supposedly insane heir who had spent the last two hours playing with wooden horses.
Orion looked at Abel again.
Abel smiled brightly and held out another wooden horse.
"Your turn."
Orion stared at the toy.
Then at his husband.
Slowly, very slowly, he reached out and took it.
"Fine."
Abel’s smile became even brighter.
And for some reason, Orion had the terrible feeling that his carefully controlled life had just become considerably more complicated.