Chapter 157
Shania walked barefoot through the garden, the soft grass tickling her feet. The morning sun filtered through the canopy of trees, casting dappled shadows on the ground. This was her favorite place in the estate—a sanctuary where life felt simple and her thoughts could wander freely. Today, though, her mind was anything but still.
In the weeks since the foundation’s mural unveiling, she had been grappling with a question she couldn’t shake: What’s next? Not for the foundation or her relationship with Stefan, but for herself. She had built so much, survived even more, yet there was a quiet restlessness in her heart.
“Thinking too hard again?” Stefan’s voice broke her reverie.
She turned to find him standing a few steps away, coffee cup in hand, his dark hair slightly tousled from the breeze. His presence was grounding, as always.
“I can’t help it,” she admitted with a wry smile. “You know me—I need to have something to obsess over.”
He smirked and closed the distance betwee
