Chapter 16

Ethan hadn't slept in three days. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw Sophia's face as she'd walked away from him, heard her voice asking if he'd lost himself.

The answer was yes. Somewhere between Harrison's expectations and his own fear, he'd forgotten who he wanted to be.

His phone buzzed. Marcus: "Saw the news about Sophia. She's incredible. You're an idiot."

Ethan set the phone aside and picked up the foundation plans scattered across his desk. Sophia's handwriting filled the margins detailed notes about community partnerships, funding models, implementation strategies. She'd thought of everything.

He'd been so focused on protecting her from his world that he'd failed to see she didn't need protection. She needed a partner.

The door to his office opened. Harrison walked in without knocking, something he'd never done before.

"We need to talk," the older man said, settling into the chair across from Ethan's desk.

"If you're here to gloat..."

"I'm here to apologize."

Ethan looked up, startled. Harrison had never apologized to him for anything.

"I watched the news coverage," Harrison continued. "The real coverage, not the tabloid garbage. I saw what people who actually know her had to say."

"And?"

"And I realized I've been a fool. Your fiancée isn't some opportunist looking for a meal ticket. She's someone who's spent years lifting others up, who understands service better than most people in our circle ever will."

Ethan leaned back in his chair. "What changed your mind?"

"Dr. Patricia Holmes. The community center director. She spoke about Sophia like she was talking about a saint. Ten years of volunteer work, hundreds of families helped, three published papers on family advocacy that are being used to shape policy in four states." Harrison's voice was quiet. "I had someone do real research, not tabloid gossip. Do you know she turned down Harvard Law to become a social worker?"

"I knew she was accomplished."

"Accomplished? She's extraordinary. And I convinced you to ask her to take a break because I was worried about appearances."

"I made that choice."

"You made it because you trusted my judgment. My judgment was wrong."

Harrison stood, moving to the window. "I've been in this business for forty years. I've seen strategic marriages that were personal disasters, seen people sacrifice everything for acceptance that never came. I've never seen you as happy as you were with her."

"But?"

"No but. That's the point. I spent so much time worrying about what your relationship meant for the business that I forgot to consider what it meant for you." He turned back to Ethan. "You love her."

"Yes."

"And she loves you. Real love, not the kind that comes with contracts and prenups and strategic considerations."

"Yes."

"Then why are you sitting here instead of fighting for her?"

Ethan felt the weight of the question. "Because I'm scared I've already lost her."

"Have you tried?"

"She won't take my calls."

"Then stop calling. Start showing up. Start fighting."

"What if it's too late?"

Harrison's expression softened. "Then at least you'll know you tried. But sitting here feeling sorry for yourself guarantees you'll lose her."

After Harrison left, Ethan sat alone with his thoughts. He'd been approaching this all wrong, trying to find a way to make Sophia fit into his world instead of building a world that deserved her.

He picked up his phone and called his attorney.

"I need to set up a nonprofit organization," he said. "Tonight."

"Tonight? Ethan, it's almost ten o'clock."

"I need the paperwork ready first thing in the morning. And I need you to find the best grant writer in the city, someone who understands family advocacy programs."

"What's this about?"

"It's about making sure the woman I love has everything she needs to change the world, whether she wants to do it with me or not."

By morning, he had the framework for the Martinez Foundation for Family Advocacy – an organization that would fund exactly the kind of work Sophia had been dreaming about. He'd commit ten million dollars initially, with plans to raise additional funding.

But first, he needed to do something more important. He needed to show the world who she really was.

He picked up his phone and dialed a number he'd never thought he'd use.

"Manhattan Today? I'd like to speak to your editor. I have a story I think you'll be interested in."

The editor was skeptical at first, but Ethan's offer was too good to refuse: an exclusive interview, on the record, about his relationship with Sophia Martinez and what she really meant to him.

"I want to set the record straight," Ethan said. "About who she is, what she's accomplished, and why I'm proud to love her."

"This is unusual, Mr. Blackwell. Most people in your position try to minimize this kind of attention."

"I'm not most people. And she's not most people either. It's time everyone knew that."

The interview was scheduled for the following morning. Ethan spent the night preparing, not with talking points or strategic messaging, but with the truth. The truth about how Sophia had challenged him, changed him, made him want to be better.

When he was done, everyone would know exactly who Sophia Martinez was and exactly how lucky he was to love her.

The only question was whether she'd give him the chance to prove it.