She_istrue1

Beneath the Same Roof

An intense, steamy forbidden romance

When Ava Monroe’s mother remarries into wealth, Ava’s world turns upside down — and so does her carefully guarded heart. Forced to live under the same roof as her enigmatic stepbrother Julian Hart, she’s thrust into a world of polished surfaces hiding raw, tangled emotions.

Julian is a man ruled by control and silence, a brooding enigma who keeps everyone at arm’s length — until Ava. Beneath his cold exterior lies a storm of desire and vulnerability that threatens to unravel them both.

As days bleed into nights filled with stolen glances, charged silences, and forbidden touches, Ava and Julian are drawn into a dangerous game of craving and restraint. Every secret moment deepens the connection neither wants to admit — but the consequences of crossing the line are devastating.

In a mansion built on power and expectation, can two broken souls risk everything for a love that should never exist? Or will the walls they live beneath become the cage that traps them forever.

BENEATH THE SAME ROOF

📖 Chapter 37 – The Vow and the Veil

Themes: Hidden sanctity, unexpected confrontation, father-daughter reckoning, love's final stand

PART 1: THE SECRET WEDDING (POV: Julian)

They didn't want approval, church bells, or catered menus.

So they chose a chapel in the middle of a tiny Greek village — a place that didn't know them, didn't care who they were.

Julian borrowed a white shirt from a stranger. Ava wore a sundress and no shoes.

There were only six people present. None knew the couple's story.

To the villagers, it was just another barefoot elopement — a quick ceremony by two foreigners who looked far too in love to need anything formal.

But inside that tiny whitewashed chapel, Ava and Julian stood before God, the sea, and themselves.

> Priest (translated): "Do you take this man—"

> Ava (interrupting softly): "I already did. A long time ago."

> Priest: "Do you take this woman—"

> Julian: "She's the only thing I've never let go of."

They sealed it with a kiss so reverent it felt like forgiveness.

PART 2: THE FATHER RETURNS (POV: Ava)

Their apartment was still, humming with post-honeymoon silence — sunlight slanting across unpacked bags.

Marina answered first… and froze.

Holding a manila envelope and a glassy expression.

> "I saw the docuseries," he began.

"Do you want to destroy this family permanently?"

> "You lost the right to define 'family' when you abandoned it."

> "If you don't annul this… I'll go to the board of trustees. Julian's label. Ava's publisher. You'll be branded a cultural scandal, not a love story."

Julian poured two glasses of whiskey.

Ava didn't speak. Just opened the envelope.

Articles about "step-sibling marriages and their consequences"

A typed, notarized legal form for annulment

Ava looked at the pictures — her younger self, wide-eyed, alone.

And set them on fire in the kitchen sink.

> "I'd rather be hated with you… than healed without you."

Julian lifts her onto the counter, the flames flickering behind them.

> "And write our names in the ash."

They kiss. Deep. Married. Chosen. Untouchable.

chapter 37