Page 280 of Money Reigns

Our first weekend together, hidden under glass and strung lights, wrapped in roses and orchids. The place that felt like magic.

My chest swells. “The conservatory garden,” I whisper.

Ella loops her arm through mine, eyes glinting with excitement. “Then let’s go find your forever.”

The car rolls to a stop outside the conservatory, its glass dome glittering under the night sky. My pulse is so loud it drowns out the hum of the engine.

“Come on,” I say, grabbing my bag, but Ella doesn’t move.

I frown. “Aren’t you coming?”

She shakes her head, smiling soft and a little teary. “No. This is where you leave me. Good luck, future Mrs. Beaumont.”

My throat tightens. Happy tears sting my eyes as I lean across the seat and crush her in a hug. “Thank you, for everything.”

“Go,” she whispers, nudging me toward the doors.

I step out, heels clicking against the stone path, and push the conservatory doors open.

Inside, it’s breathtaking.

The garden is just as I remember it, quiet, lush, rare, but tonight it glows, dressed for forever. Candles flicker in glass lanterns. Roses and orchids spill over trellises. The cherry tree blooms again, just like that first weekend, pale petals drifting down in a soft, impossible rain.

And under it, waiting, is War.

He stands tall in a black suit, the sharp lines softened by the glow of string lights. His eyes find mine immediately, and for a moment the world falls away.

“Olivia,” he says, voice rough, steadying. He steps closer, every inch of him sure. “You found me.”

The words hit me deep,too deep.

“I was nothing but shadows when you walked in,” he continues. “A man with too much steel, too many walls, too many ghosts. And then you—” He gestures around us, to the flowers, the light. “You brought starlight to every inch of my darkness. You turned every shadow into something I could finally stand in without fear.”

My lips tremble. Tears spill over.

“I thought I was building an empire. But what I really built…what Ifoughtfor, was a place where you’d stay. Where you’d be mine. And tonight, I don’t want a future without you. I don’t ever want amomentwithout you.”

He drops to one knee, a small velvet box in his hand, eyes burning into mine like a vow already spoken.

“Olivia Baker,” he says, voice breaking for the first time. “Be my wife. Let me spend every day proving that forever is too short for us.”

For a second, I can’t breathe. My chest is too full; of light, of love, ofhim.

I drop down in front of him, dress pooling around my knees as I throw my arms around his neck. Laughter spills out of me, unsteady and real. “Of course I’ll marry you,” I whisper against his ear. “Like I’d ever say no.”

War chuckles low in his chest, arms crushing me tighter. When I finally lean back, he’s grinning, relief and triumph flashing in his eyes.

“Give me your hand,” he murmurs.

I hold it out, trembling, and he slides the ring onto my finger, the one I picked out, solid, perfect, glittering under the conservatory lights.

He lifts my hand, kisses the ring, then presses his lips to mine. The kiss is sweet, slow, but underneath it hums that fire that’s always been ours, untamed, undeniable, forever.

When he pulls back, his forehead rests against mine, voice dropping low.

“All steps complete,”he smirks triumphant.

“What?” I chuckle.

“It just means you’re mine now.Always.”

Cherry blossoms drift down around us, beautiful and soft and I know there’s no world, no lifetime, where I wouldn’t be his.