As I followed him inside the penthouse, I expected him to turn immediately toward his study. But he didn't. As I moved to go to the separate wing of the penthouse towards my room, his voice stopped me.
"Your belongings have been moved."
I froze, my back was facing him. Slowly, I turned.
"What?"
He stood with his hands in his pockets.
"Your belongings have been moved from the guest suite to the master bedroom." He said in a casual way as if its nothing big.
The master suite. A place whose door had remained closed to me since our wedding night. It was the boundary in our marriage, a line I had never dared to cross.
"You... you moved my things?"
"Perception must be maintained, Rysa. Even within these walls." He took a step closer, his eyes meeting mine. "A wife does not sleep in a separate room."
"We are alone! There is no one here to perceive us!"
"I know but we need to change our arrangement now. You will learn to act the part of my wife in every aspect. Starting tonight."
He gestured toward the entrance to the master suite.
"The room is prepared."
I stared at the open door, the dimly lit master suite was more threatening than any dark alley. Seeing the door open for me reminded me of my past.
Three years ago, I stood here with my suitcases at my feet like lost children. The wedding ceremony was a blur, the reception a nightmare. Asher had already vanished somewhere.
Mrs. Chen, the housekeeper, had appeared.
"This way, Mrs. Wang." She had said, leading me not toward the grand, central corridor, but down a side hallway to the east wing. She opened a door to a room that was breathtakingly beautiful.
"Mr. Wang had this suite prepared for you," Mrs. Chen stated. "Mr. Wang values his privacy. This will be your space. His rooms are in the west wing."
With a polite nod, she closed the door. I was left alone with the silence of the beautiful, empty room.
The memory faded, but the ache of that loneliness remained. That guest suite, for all its isolation, had been my sanctuary. A place where I could stop performing. Where I could shed the role of Mrs. Wang and simply be Rysa. Now, he was taking even that from me.
I walked, stepping over the entrance into the master suite. The air was different there. It was cool, smelling faintly of his sandalwood cologne and clean linen. The room was massive wih a modern platform bed. My suitcases were placed near the dressing room door.
"Don't do this. There's no need."
I blurted out and spun to face him who was standing at the doorway.
"My room is fine. It's my space. This is yours!"
Asher had paused by the doorway, his hand resting on the frame. He turned his head. He didn't look angry at my outburst. He looked analytical.
"Your room was that of a guest. As I said, you are my wife. The performance we began tonight requires backstage consistency. There can be no discrepancy between the image we project to the world and the reality within these walls."
He took a step inside.
"A wife does not sleep in a separate wing. It fosters speculation." He said as he moved towards the bed.
I stood frozen in the middle of his room, the reality of his words sinking in. He expected me to follow. He expected me to get ready for bed.
"You'll sleep here." He said gesturing towards the bed.
The distance from the door to the bed seemed like a mile. He began to unknot his tie. The finality in his tone left no room for argument, no space for plea. This was no longer a distant marriage of convenience. It had become a terrifyingly reality now.
He didn't wait for my answer as if the matter was settled, his hands went to the cuffs of his shirt, unfastening them. Then his fingers moved to the buttons of hi shirt and he started unbuttoning his shirt.
"The bathroom is through there," he said pointing toward a door in the dark wall. "Don't take too long."