Chapter 18 - The Rooftop
It was a warm summer evening, exactly five years since the night they fled the mansion. Leo had asked Mariana to meet him on the rooftop garden after the girls were asleep.
When Mariana stepped out of the elevator, she found the terrace transformed. Hundreds of warm string lights were woven through the greenery, and soft jazz played from a hidden speaker. Leo was standing by the glass railing, looking out at the city skyline, dressed in a sharp black suit that reminded her of the night they met, though the severe edge in his eyes was entirely gone.
"What is all this?" Mariana smiled, walking toward him.
Leo took her hands, his thumbs gently brushing over her knuckles. "Five years ago, I made a promise to protect you. But along the way, you did something I didn't expect. You saved me, too. You gave me a home. You gave me a family."
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small velvet box. As he dropped to one knee, Mariana’s hands flew to her mouth, tears instantly welling in her eyes.
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"Mariana, I don't just want to be your protector anymore. I want to be your husband. Will you marry me?"
"Yes," she whispered, pulling him up into a desperate, joyous kiss. "Yes, a thousand times, yes."
