Page 92 of Code of Heart

For the next several days, as Levi slowly recovered, his phone exploded with jokes, GIFs, and memes about his condition and about pork. Owen had found every bathroom-related meme in existence and sent them at regular intervals…because why suffer in silence when you can suffer publicly?

Levi vowed that, once fully recovered, he would throttle him.

Still, somewhere between surviving the ordeal and enduring Owen’s torment, he managed to pull himself together enough to arrange the surprise he had been planning for Aurelia. With Ivy’s help, of course.

He had given her a very clear vision of the dress he wanted for his wife—something that would leave the entire ballroom breathless. Ivy’s delighted squeal over the phone had told him he was onto something good. She had immediately taken charge, assuring him she would handle every last detail.

Now, after another long week spent helping his team unravel the lingering mess Harris Wilkerson left behind, while still recovering from his ill-fated fondue dinner, the night of the Harvest Charity Ball had finally arrived.

Aurelia had been up since dawn, fretting over final details, too busy to remember she hadn’t even seen her dress yet.

Ivy and Grace were scheduled to come over later that evening to help her get ready with an entire pre-ball ritual that Levi found secretly endearing. Of all his friends, only Owen would be attending tonight. Isaac was still pulling late nights at the office, and Grace didn’t want to go without him. And if Grace wasn’t going, then Ivy wouldn’t go.

Levi, for his part, decided not to go into the office today. He wanted to be close if Aurelia needed him…and, if he was beinghonest, he needed to see the look on her face when she saw the dress for the first time.

So, he cleared his calendar and was now en route to pick it up himself.

He couldn’t stop smiling as he parked on a side street, stepped out of his car, and made his way toward the most exclusive designer boutique in Joia City.

Tonight, his wife was going to own that ballroom, and Levi couldn’t wait to see her in the dress that would start it all.

Aurelia

The Harvest Charity Ball was tonight, and Aurelia was freaking out.

Sleep had been impossible. She had tossed and turned half the night, plagued by another nightmare that had her waking in a panicked sweat, heart racing, the phantom grip of terror still curling its icy fingers around her throat.

Will these nightmares ever stop?

By dawn, she had given up entirely, the sheets tangled hopelessly around her legs. There was no point trying to rest when her mind refused to quiet. Instead, she threw herself into motion, channeling every shred of that anxious energy into something—anything—productive.

She made herself eat a toasted English muffin and forced down a cup of coffee, though it felt like her nerves had already consumed her from the inside out. Right as she grabbed her bagand tried to dart out the door, Levi caught her around the waist and pulled her back against his chest.

For a moment, everything stilled.

Wrapped safely in his arms, her body instinctively relaxed, soaking in his warmth, his steady presence. He held her tight, one large hand tracing slow, reassuring circles along her back.

With his chin resting against the top of her head, his deep voice rumbled softly, “You’ve done an incredible job, Auri. I haven’t even seen the final result yet, but I’m already impressed. I know you’re nervous…but you have absolutely nothing to be nervous about.”

Then he tipped her chin up, his lips brushing against hers in a kiss so slow and devastatingly tender it left her breathless and a little dazed. She stood there, staring at his mouth even after he pulled back, her mind blank except for the lingering warmth of his kiss.

Grinning, he pressed one more kiss to her forehead and murmured, “Now go show everyone who’s really in charge.”

It was exactly what she needed to hear.

While it still felt foreign to have someone so supportive in her life—someone who believed in her without question—it also made her painfully aware of everything she had been missing. Of how low she had set the bar before this.

The smile Levi put on her face didn’t fade once, even after she stepped into Starhaven Manor and slipped seamlessly back into her professional role.

By the time she crossed the grand threshold, the nerves were buried under her measured calmness. She lived and breathed by the precise event checklist she had crafted to keep everything running smoothly.

The ballroom was nearly finished with the tables arranged in perfect symmetry, the temporary stage set, and all audio-visual equipment tested the day before.

Outside, the transformation had already begun earlier in the week. Guests attending tonight would be greeted by a wonderland of twinkling string lights woven through faux vines and branches arching over the driveway, immersing them in the enchanting forest theme from the moment they arrive.

That same magic continued throughout the estate. Lavish arrangements of rich autumnal flowers accented every space. The final touches were being applied even now to the ballroom, as the catering company busied itself in the kitchen, having taken over preparations for tonight’s menu days ago.

There was only one thing she hadn’t micromanaged.