Chapter 10 - NOT A SECRET ANYMORE
Exactly one year later, the world looked entirely different for the Blackwood family.
The private dining room at the very top of the Blackwood Tower was lit warmly by hundreds of glowing candles.
There were no invasive reporters, no scheming business executives, and definitely no pretentious place cards on the table.
It was an intimate, private dinner meant only for the four people who mattered most.
Noah was wearing a tiny, custom-tailored tuxedo, eating a giant piece of double-chocolate cake with intense, messy focus.
Richard was sipping an expensive vintage wine, laughing loudly at a terrible joke Ethan had just made about the stock market.
Hannah wore a simple but breathtaking red silk dress, her face glowing with a true, unshakable happiness.
Ethan stood up from his chair and gently tapped his crystal glass with a silver spoon to get their attention.
The room went wonderfully quiet, except for the soft jazz music playing from the speakers in the background.
Ethan walked around the long table and stopped right next to Hannah’s chair.
He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small, black velvet box.
He got down on one knee, right there in front of his beaming father and his wide-eyed son.
Hannah gasped softly, her hands flying up to cover her mouth as happy tears immediately sprang to her eyes.
"Seven years ago, I was stupid enough to let the best thing that ever happened to me walk out the door," Ethan said, his voice thick with raw emotion.
He opened the velvet box, revealing a stunning, flawless diamond ring that sparkled under the candlelight.
"I know I cannot change the past, but I want to spend every single day of my future making it up to you."
He looked up into her tear-filled eyes, his own shining with absolute certainty.
"Hannah Carter, will you do me the absolute honor of marrying me?"
Noah dropped his silver fork onto his plate with a loud clatter, his eyes wide with pure excitement.
"Say yes, Mom!" the little boy cheered loudly, bouncing up and down in his seat.
Hannah laughed a watery, beautiful laugh, nodding her head vigorously as she looked at her perfect family.
"Yes," she whispered, reaching down to pull Ethan up into a deep, passionate kiss.
"Yes, I will marry you."
Richard raised his wine glass in a silent, deeply satisfied toast to the beautiful future ahead.
The billionaire patriarch had finally realized that his family's greatest treasure was never in their bank accounts.
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It was the brave woman holding his son's hand, and the little boy happily calling him Grandpa.
What do you think of this expanded, more dramatic version of their happily ever after?
