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"Is that a yes?" Suddenly uncertain, I felt my carefully constructed composure wavering. "Because I realize the timing is rather dramatic, what with the pregnancy announcement and the merger, but I've been carrying this ring for nearly two weeks and—"
The words hung between us in the golden afternoon light, and for a heartbeat I was terrified she might say no. That the pregnancy and the merger and everything else might have made this gesture seem calculated rather than heartfelt. But then I saw the tears gathering in her eyes, and I knew.
"Yes." She was laughing through tears I hadn't noticed falling. "Yes, of course yes, you ridiculous man."
I slipped the ring onto her finger with hands that were shamefully unsteady, then rose to kiss her properly. This time, when we broke apart, we were both crying.
"Twins," I murmured against her forehead.
"And a wedding," she added.
"And a partnership that's going to revolutionize how legal and media firms collaborate."
"Don't forget the part where we're madly in love."
"Never," I promised. "That's rather the point of everything else."
We spent several minutes simply holding each other in the golden light, her ring catching the afternoon sun as she traced patterns on my chest.
The magnitude of everything—the babies, the engagement, the business merger, the family reconciliation still to come—should have been overwhelming. Instead, I felt a profound sense of rightness, as if all the scattered pieces of my life had finally aligned.
"We should tell the others," Lili said eventually, though she made no move to step away from my arms.
"In a moment," I replied, reluctant to break the spell. "Let me have you to myself just a little longer."
But eventually, duty called, and we made our way to the manor to share our news with the family we were still learning how to be.
The drawing room at Grosvenor Manor had never felt more perfect than it did that evening, with sunset light filteringthrough the tall windows and the fire crackling cheerfully in the hearth.
Daphne and James sat together on the settee, her hand resting casually on his knee in a gesture that spoke of hard-won openness. Lili curled beside me in the wingback chair, her left hand prominently displayed so the ring caught the light.
"Well," Daphne said, raising her champagne flute, "I think this calls for a toast."
"Several toasts," James corrected, his smile warm and genuine. He shook his head in amazement. "You know, most people ease into major life changes. Marriage, then house, then perhaps one child. But not Edward Grosvenor. He acquires a fiancée, twins, and a media empire all in the span of a few months. To the merger, to the engagement, to the babies—"
"Babies?" Daphne practically shrieked, bouncing to her feet. "As in more than one? Edward, you absolute overachiever!"
"Twins," Lili confirmed, grinning at her friend's shocked expression. "Apparently your brother doesn't do anything by halves."
"Efficiency," I said gravely, "has always been a priority."
James burst into laughter. "Good God, Edward. Two babies and a media empire. Are you planning to sleep at all in the next five years?"
"Sleep is overrated," I replied, then caught Lili's amused glance. "Though I may revise that opinion come March."
"March?" Daphne was practically bouncing in her seat. "They're due in March? Oh, this is perfect! Spring babies, and a spring wedding, and everything beginning again..."
Her enthusiasm was infectious, warming something in my chest that had been cold for far too long.
This—my sister's joy, James's friendship, Lili's hand in mine—this was what family was supposed to feel like.
"There's one more thing," Lili said, her voice taking on a more serious tone. "We've been talking, and we'd like to ask you both something."
"Anything," Daphne said immediately.
"We want you to be godparents," I said. "Both of you, to both babies. If you're willing."
The silence that followed was profound. James cleared his throat roughly, while Daphne's eyes filled with tears.