chapter 190
Sebastian's POV:
The leather beneath my hands was warm as I gripped the steering wheel, navigating the winding road up Blackwood Peak.
Elena sat beside me, her fingers drumming a nervous rhythm against her thigh—a tell she'd developed over the past year that never failed to amuse me.
She thought she hid her anxiety so well, but I'd memorized every micro-expression, every subtle shift in her breathing.
"Where exactly are we going?" Her voice carried that carefully controlled tone she used when trying not to sound worried.
The same tone she'd used this morning when denying she'd dressed up for me.
"Patience." I kept my eyes on the darkening road ahead, fighting the urge to reach over and still those restless fingers. "We're almost there."
The headlights carved through the growing darkness, illuminating nothing but dense forest on either side.
I felt rather than saw her shrink slightly into her seat. The city lights had long since disappeared behind us, and with them, her comfort zone.
"Sebastian." A hint of genuine unease crept into her voice now. "This is... very remote."
"Mm." I couldn't quite suppress my smile. "That's rather the point."
The road curved sharply, and I slowed, knowing we were close.
Through the trees, the first glimpse of our destination appeared—a clearing at the very peak of the mountain, where the Vane family had maintained a private camping ground for three generations.
Though 'camping ground' was perhaps too modest a term for what my grandfather had created here.
"Oh." The soft exhale beside me was worth every minute of planning.
I pulled into the designated area, killing the engine. In the sudden silence, I could hear her quick breathing, feel the weight of her stare.
"This is..." She trailed off, and I finally turned to look at her properly.
Her eyes were wide, lips slightly parted. In the dim interior light, she looked almost ethereal, those diamond earrings catching what little light filtered through the windshield.
"Come on." I was out of the car and around to her door before she could formulate whatever question was brewing behind those expressive eyes.
She took my offered hand, stepping out onto the wooden platform that served as our arrival point. She stood frozen, staring out at the view that had stolen her words.
The entire city spread below us like a jewel box tipped over black velvet. Millions of lights glittered in the clear winter air, the aurora of civilization constrained by the darker shadows of the lake and distant mountains.
Up here, with no light pollution, the stars were already beginning to emerge despite the early hour.
"It's beautiful," Elena breathed, turning in a slow circle to take it all in. "Sebastian, this is absolutely gorgeous."
I watched the excitement bloom across her face, the way her eyes darted from the view to the pavilion to me, clearly anticipating... something. The corners of my mouth twitched as I moved to the prepared spread, pouring wine with deliberate casualness.
"I had them bring up dinner," I said, gesturing to the carefully arranged platters.
She made a soft sound of appreciation, but I caught the way her gaze lingered on me, waiting.
When I simply handed her a glass and settled into one of the plush chairs, stretching my legs out like I had all the time in the world, I saw the first flicker of uncertainty cross her features.
"This is... nice," she said carefully, perching on the edge of her seat. Every time I shifted, reached for food, or adjusted my position, her attention snapped to me with barely concealed anticipation.
I took a slow sip of wine, gazed out at the stars. "Peaceful up here."
"Mm-hmm." She was practically vibrating with nervous energy now, stealing glances at me between distracted bites of bread.
Twenty minutes passed. I made idle conversation about constellations, the weather forecast, even the new security protocols at her studio. Each mundane topic seemed to deflate her a little more, though she tried valiantly to hide it.
Finally, with a small sigh of defeat, she set down her barely touched plate and reclined on the furs, apparently giving up on whatever she'd been expecting. "You're right. It is peaceful."
A low chuckle escaped me before I could stop it. She stiffened.
"What?" Her tone was defensive now, caught between embarrassment and irritation.
"Nothing." But I couldn't quite wipe the knowing smile from my face. "Just... you're adorable when you're disappointed."
She was already gathering herself to glare at me when I stood smoothly, extending my hand. "Look up, Elena."
"What—"
"Just look up."
The moment her gaze lifted skyward, I pressed the remote in my pocket.
The first burst of fireworks split the darkness, a cascade of gold and silver that painted her stunned face in shifting light. Her mouth fell open as explosion after explosion filled the night sky, each more elaborate than the last.
"Sebastian," she gasped, but the show was building to its crescendo.
The final sequence began—carefully choreographed bursts that formed letters against the stars. W... I... L... L...
I dropped to one knee as the complete message blazed above us: WILL YOU MARRY ME?
Her hands flew to her mouth, eyes wide and glassy with tears as she looked between the sky and where I knelt, ring box now open in my trembling hands.
"I know we're already legally married," I said, my carefully prepared speech evaporating under the weight of her gaze. "But you deserve the choice, the romance, the question asked properly. Elena Ross, will you marry me? Really marry me this time?"
She was nodding before I even finished, tears streaming freely now. "Yes. Yes, of course, yes!"
I barely managed to get the ring on her finger before she launched herself at me, kissing me breathless while the last of the fireworks rained golden light around us.
She burrowed into my warmth. "You have to promise to still look at me like this in fifty years."
"Like what?"
"Like I'm your whole universe. Like you'd burn down the world just to see me smile. "
"Elena," I said softly, "I've looked at you that way since the moment I saw you. It's not something I can turn off, even if I wanted to."
"Good." Her voice was soft but clear against my chest. "Because I plan to be very high maintenance in our old age."
I smiled into the darkness, holding my future wife, listening to her breathe. Somewhere in the city below, life went on—meetings and mergers and the thousand small dramas that used to consume me.
But up here, in our private sphere between earth and stars, none of that mattered.
I'd won. We'd won.
And this was just the beginning.
"Sebastian?" Her voice was barely a whisper.
"Yes, love?"
"The fireworks really were excessive."
"I know."
"Do it again for the wedding?"
I laughed softly, pressing a kiss to her temple. "Anything you want, Mrs. Vane. Anything at all."
She murmured something that might have been agreement and curled closer against me. We lay there together, wrapped in furs and starlight, both lost in the profound realization that sometimes, against all odds and logic and reasonable expectation, dreams really did come true.
Even for monsters who'd learned to love.
Even for kidnapped girls who'd chosen to stay.
Even for us.
——The End——