Chapter 14 - THE PROMISE BENEATH THE OAK TREE
I proposed to Grace beneath an old oak tree in Central Park.
No photographers.
No orchestra.
No extravagant display.
Just the two of us.
And a small velvet box.
Grace stared when I knelt.
“Dominic.”
I smiled nervously.
“I know.”
She laughed through tears.
“You're really doing this?”
I nodded.
“Grace Bennett.”
Her eyes filled.
“You met me when I was broken.”
She shook her head.
“You were injured.”
I smiled.
“Both.”
She laughed softly.
I continued.
“You saw things in me I had stopped looking for.”
My voice trembled.
“Kindness.”
“Hope.”
“A reason to change.”
Grace covered her mouth.
I opened the box.
Inside was a simple diamond ring.
Not the largest.
Not the most expensive.
But chosen because it reminded me of her.
Beautiful without needing to prove anything.
“Will you marry me?”
Grace cried.
Then knelt in front of me.
I blinked.
“What are you doing?”
She laughed.
“I'm not letting you kneel alone.”
I smiled.
She took my face between her hands.
“Yes.”
My heart stopped.
“Yes?”
She nodded.
“Yes, Dominic.”
I kissed her.
May you like
And for the first time in my life, I understood that love wasn't something you controlled.
It was something you were trusted to protect.
