LOGINKennedy still hadn't moved.Aria grabbed Shannon's hand. "Oh my God!"She looked at Sean. "You proposed?"Sean nodded."You actually proposed?""Yes.""Without me?"Sean frowned. "Why would you be there?""I don't know!" Aria turned back to the ring. "It's beautiful."Shannon's smile widened.Amelia was smiling too now but her attention kept drifting toward Kennedy. He looked blank as though the words had entered his ears but his brain had refused delivery.Mr. Voss finally spoke. "Marriage?"Sean looked toward him. "Yes, sir."Mr. Voss's frown deepened. "You want to marry my granddaughter?"Sean nodded. "Very much."Mr. Voss looked at Shannon. "Do you want to marry him?"Kennedy finally moved. "Nobody is marrying anybody."Everyone looked at him.Sean closed his eyes briefly. There it was.Shannon sighed. "Dad."Kennedy pointed at the ring. "Take that off."Shannon's brows shot up. "No."Kennedy blinked.Sean wisely said nothing."Shannon.""I said yes.""You can say no.""I don't wa
The atmosphere at Miles Estate had changed by the time they returned. Shannon noticed the additional vehicle outside immediately. "Who's here?"Sean looked toward it. "Don't know."Aria was still carrying a small box of sweets she'd somehow convinced the restaurant to package for her.Shannon walked inside first. "Dad?"Voices came from the sitting room. Kennedy's, Amelia's and another man's.Shannon slowed.Sean noticed. His hand touched the small of her back. "You okay?"She nodded then they entered.Mr. Voss was speaking when he saw her. He stopped completely.Shannon stopped too.Amelia turned. The moment she saw Shannon, her expression softened.Kennedy stood from his chair. "You're back."But Mr. Voss didn't seem to hear him. He was staring at Shannon, his granddaughter, not a photograph, not a video, not a frozen image on a screen, her, alive, standing a few feet away. For several seconds, the elderly man said nothing then his eyes filled. "Oh..."Amelia looked toward her fathe
Shanon's heart thundered.She thought about Kennedy, about Amelia, about Edward, about everything surrounding them, then she looked at Sean, just Sean, the man kneeling in front of her, the man who had bought the ring before knowing she carried his child, before any possible advantage, before the latest war, and suddenly the answer wasn't complicated at all.Shannon smiled through her tears. "Yes."Sean froze. "What?"She laughed. "Yes."His entire face changed. "Yes?""Yes, Sean."He stood so fast she laughed again then his arms were around her. He lifted her from the floor."Sean!""I love you.""Put me down!""No.""The baby!"That worked instantly. He lowered her so carefully it made her laugh harder, then he kissed her softly at first then again.Shannon held his face.Sean pulled back only enough to slide the ring onto her finger.Both stared at it.Sean looked almost stunned. "My wife."Shannon laughed. "Fiancée.""For now."She looked up.Sean smiled then his expression became
"Sean.""I'm not joking.""I can see that." She stared at him. "This is because Dad won't let you sleep over?"His face immediately hardened. "No.""Sean.""That sounds terrible.""It does.""I'm not marrying you because I want access to your bedroom."Shannon raised an eyebrow. "That did not improve it."Sean sighed. "Okay." He took both her hands. "Listen, I want to marry you because I love you." His voice softened. "I've wanted you in my life permanently for longer than I've been willing to admit. This mess with your father..." He shook his head. "...it just made me realize how much I hate leaving things undefined."Shannon watched him.Sean continued. "I don't want you to be my girlfriend, I don't want people asking what we are, I don't want to wonder whether one family war can separate us." He squeezed her hands. "I want you to be my wife."Her eyes filled. "And I want to be your husband."Shannon swallowed.Sean smiled faintly. "And yes, there is a small additional benefit."Sh
Sean looked at her for several seconds then sighed. "I hate this.""What?""This." He gestured between them. "Seeing you like I'm visiting."Her face softened.Sean continued. "I want you close all the time. Twenty four hours."Shannon's brows rose. "That's slightly possessive.""Extremely." He didn't even pretend otherwise. "I want to wake up and see you, I want to know you're okay because you're beside me, not because Aria texts me. I want to hear you complain when I touch your stomach too much.""You do touch it too much.""My child lives there.""Our child."That made him smile then the sadness returned. "I miss sleeping beside you."Shannon went still.Sean looked down. "I miss holding you, I miss reaching for you at night." His jaw tightened. "And this is stupid because you're here you're not gone, we're together but somehow..." He shook his head. "...I still miss you."Shannon's eyes softened. She knew exactly what he meant.Sean pushed his chair back.She watched him stand.He
Mr. Voss's expression changed immediately. That was all it took. Gone was the grandfather admiring screenshots. His face hardened. "What did she do?"Amelia's eyes remained on the video. "Enough."Mr. Voss looked back at the screen. Evelyn beside Edward, Shannon opposite them, Sean moving toward Shannon and his expression became colder. "Then why is she near my granddaughter?"Amelia didn't answer because she was wondering exactly the same thing.Kennedy's phone continued buzzing. His PR director, legal team, board members, friends, journalists. Everyone wanted a response.Another trending post appeared. MILES VS VALE: ARE SHANNON AND SEAN THE ROMEO AND JULIET OF BILLIONAIRE WARFARE?Kennedy's face twisted. "Absolutely not."Mr. Voss laughed.Kennedy glared. "Nothing about that is funny.""Romeo and Juliet died.""Exactly."Mr. Voss's smile vanished. "Fair."Kennedy threw the phone onto the sofa. "I need media to get ahead of this."Amelia looked at him. "Don't."His head snapped towa
The first thing Shannon felt was the weight, like her entire body had been dragged beneath something heavy and invisible, pressing her down into a darkness that refused to let her rise.Then came the sound, a slow, steady beep... beep... beep...It echoed from far away at first, distant and unreal,
The guest room was at the end of the hall.Shannon paused at the doorway, her fingers resting lightly against the frame before she stepped in.It used to be a storage room now it was neat, cleaned and prepared.A bed, fresh sheets and a wardrobe that looked barely used.Shannon exhaled slowly and s
The hospital discharged them the next day.Shannon didn’t know whether that was fate or cruelty.She stood just outside the building, her fingers gripping the thin discharge papers in her hand as the sunlight hit her face. Too bright. Like the world hadn’t just ended for her.A few steps ahead Rowa
Shannon’s knees weakened beneath her. Three months of silence. Three months of absence. Three months where she wasn’t there. Her breathing grew uneven. Three months where someone else was. Her gaze slowly shifted back to Rowan. And this time she understood. Rowan watched her, something sharp







