Chapter 9 - The Proposal in the Dark
Two months after the attack on the gates, Port Ash had returned to its quiet, terrifying normal.
The newspapers didn't report on the warehouse fires or the shootout at the estate. They reported on stock market shifts, local charity galas, and the upcoming winter charity ball hosted by the Vale family foundation.
On a cold December night, after Sophie had fallen asleep upstairs dreaming of Christmas trees and stuffed elephants, Dominic led me out onto the stone terrace overlooking the Hudson River.
Snow was beginning to fall in fat, silent flakes, dusting the pine trees and the wrought-iron railings in white.
I wore a simple cream-colored wool sweater, shivering slightly as the winter wind bit at my cheeks.
Dominic stepped up behind me, wrapping a heavy cashmere blanket around my shoulders and pulling me tight against his body.
“Cold?” he asked.
“A little.”
He reached into his pocket, pulling out a small velvet box.
My breath caught.
I looked down at the box, then up at him, my heart hammering against my ribs. “Dominic... I already wear your grandmother’s ring on this finger.”
“That was a mark of protection,” he said quietly, opening the box to reveal a second ring—a band of intertwined platinum and yellow gold encrusted with tiny, brilliant diamonds that looked like fallen snowflakes. “This one is a choice.”
He dropped to one knee on the cold stone terrace, ignoring the snow soaking into the knees of his trousers.
“Emma Reyes,” he said, his voice steady, clear, and carrying absolute devotion across the silent night. “You walked into a diner where you didn't belong, took three bullets for a child you didn't know, and stared down an army of killers without blinking. You are the strongest, most stubborn, most beautiful thing that has ever happened to my dark, miserable life.”
He looked up at me, his midnight eyes shining with a raw vulnerability he never showed the world.
“Marry me. Let me spend the rest of my days making sure you never have to worry about rent, or buses at 4:00 a.m., or being invisible to anyone ever again.”
Tears spilled over my lashes, freezing on my cheeks as I looked down at the man who owned half of Port Ash, yet looked like he would lose his mind if I said no.
May you like
“Yes,” I choked out, a laugh bubbling up through my tears. “Yes, you idiot.”
He stood up, catching me by the waist and lifting me off my feet as his lips crashed down onto mine in a kiss that tasted of snow, whiskey, and forever.
