Chapter 18 - The Question I Never Thought I'd Ask Again
I waited another year.
No rush.
No secret deadlines.
No Friday transfer.
No manipulation.
Then I invited Chloe to Elena's foundation gala.
The event raised money for domestic workers, caregivers and service employees seeking education and legal assistance.
Elena hated public speaking.
Naturally, we made her give the keynote.
When she finished, the entire room stood.
Chloe was crying.
“So am I,” I admitted.
“You absolutely are.”
“Dust.”
“In a ballroom?”
“Expensive dust.”
After the gala, I took Chloe to the garden.
“I have something.”
Her eyes widened.
“Daniel.”
This time the ring was new.
Nothing from our old life.
No recycled symbol.
No attempt to pretend the past had never happened.
“I need to say something first.”
She stared at me.
“I forgive you.”
Her eyes filled instantly.
“Daniel—”
“That doesn't mean what happened was okay.”
“I know.”
“It doesn't mean I forgot.”
“I know.”
“It means I don't want Victor, Richard or that hospital room deciding what happens next.”
Tears rolled down her face.
Then I knelt.
“Chloe Bennett, would you like to build something with me that neither of us has to lie about?”
She laughed through her tears.
“That is the least romantic proposal I've ever heard.”
“Is that a no?”
“No.”
I blinked.
Her eyes widened.
“I mean, no, it's not a no. Yes!”
I laughed.
She pulled me up.
Then she stopped before kissing me.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“You know everything.”
“That's why I'm sure.”
We kissed.
Across the garden, someone cheered.
Elena.
Of course.
She had been watching from behind a hedge.
“You were spying?” I asked.
“I prefer observing.”
Aaron appeared beside her.
Nathan too.
Marcus.
Half our friends.
“You all knew?”
Chloe looked around.
“Apparently we're the last people to know anything again.”
May you like
Everyone laughed.
This time, being the last to know felt wonderful.
