Chapter 253

Chapter 253
Emily's POV

"Active today?" Stefan asked, his hand moving to rest over mine on my belly.

"Very. I think the milk helps." I tilted my head back to look at him. "Stefan?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you happy?"

His hand stilled. "What kind of question is that?"

"A genuine one." I shifted to face him more directly. "With everything that's happened—Anna, your father, the baby, the election—are you happy? Right now, in this moment?"

Stefan studied me for a long moment, his gray eyes serious. Then he cupped my face with both hands and kissed me. Slow. Deep. Thorough enough to make my toes curl in my sandals.

When he pulled back, his forehead rested against mine. "I have you. We're having a baby. Anna's facing justice. My mother is building a new life. And I get to marry you properly in a few months." His thumb stroked my cheekbone. "Yes, Emily. I'm happy. Happier than I ever thought possible."

My throat tightened with emotion. "Good. That's good."

"Now I have a question for you." He pulled back slightly, keeping one hand on my face. "The wedding. How do you want to do this? Small ceremony? Big event? Here or somewhere else?"

I thought about it. About everything we'd survived to get here.

"Small," I said. "Just the people who actually matter to us. Lydia and James, obviously. Michael. Jonathan and Martha. Your mother. Maybe a few others, but no more than twenty people total."

"No politicians or business associates?" Stefan's mouth quirked. "My PR team will have a heart attack."

"Let them. This isn't a political event or a merger. It's us promising to keep choosing each other every day for the rest of our lives." I traced the line of his jaw. "I don't need a fancy wedding, Stefan. I just need you. And the people who love us there to witness it."

He caught my hand and pressed a kiss to my palm. "Whatever you want. I'll make the arrangements."

"After the baby comes," I added. "I want our little one there too. Even if they're too young to remember."

Stefan's expression softened impossibly further. "A family wedding."

"Our family." The words felt like magic. Like speaking a spell into existence. "Complete."

We sat together in the garden as the sun dipped lower, his arm around my shoulders, my head on his chest. The daisies swayed in the breeze. The baby did somersaults. And for the first time in my entire life, I felt genuinely at peace.

This was everything I'd never known I needed.

---

"Emily! Emily, where are you?"

Lydia's voice carried across the garden, bright and excited. I sat up from where I'd been dozing against Stefan's shoulder—pregnancy exhaustion was real—and waved.

"Over here!"

She emerged from around the corner of the house, nearly running in her enthusiasm. A large gift box tied with yellow ribbon bounced against her hip as she jogged toward us.

Stefan stood smoothly, helping me to my feet. "I'll give you two some privacy. I need to check on some contracts anyway." He pressed a quick kiss to my temple before heading inside.

"Don't work too hard!" I called after him.

He turned at the door, that rare, genuine smile crossing his face. "Never. I have better things to come home to now."

God, that man. Still making my heart race after everything.

Lydia reached me, slightly breathless. "Sorry for just showing up, but I couldn't wait to give you this." She thrust the box into my hands. "Open it! Open it!"

I laughed at her excitement and carefully untied the ribbon. Inside, nestled in tissue paper, were the most adorable baby clothes I'd ever seen. Soft cotton onesies in pale yellow and mint green, tiny socks with animal faces, a knitted blanket with daisies embroidered along the border.

"Lydia," I breathed. "These are beautiful."

"I know you're not finding out the gender until birth, so I stuck with neutrals." She bounced on her toes. "Do you like them? Lily helped me pick the blanket. Well, she grabbed it and refused to let go, so I took that as a sign."

My throat went tight. "I love them. Thank you." I set the box down carefully and pulled her into a hug. "You're the best friend anyone could ask for."

She squeezed me back. "You're going to be an amazing mom. I know it."

We settled onto the bench, and I showed her the ring designs. She cooed appropriately over the daisies, then demanded to see my latest ultrasound photos, which I'd been carrying in my pocket to show Stefan later.

"Everything okay with Anna?" she asked eventually, her tone careful. "James mentioned something about her being arrested?"

I exhaled slowly. "She was. She's facing multiple charges. It's... it's over. Finally."

"And you're okay with that? With her just going through the legal system instead of—" Lydia made a vague gesture that I interpreted as 'instead of crushing her completely.'

"I'm okay with it." I surprised myself with how true that was. "She'll face consequences. That's enough. I don't need revenge anymore. I need to focus on my family now."

Lydia studied my face, then smiled. "You really have changed. The Emily I first met would've burned the world down."

"That Emily didn't have anything to lose." I touched my belly. "This Emily has everything to protect."

We sat in companionable silence for a moment, watching the sun paint the garden in shades of amber and rose.

"You know what's crazy?" Lydia said suddenly. "The whole Stefan searching for you thing. Like, what are the odds? Six years old, different countries, and fourteen years later you end up married to each other. It's like something out of a romance novel."

I laughed. "I'm pretty sure most romance novels don't include fake deaths, experimental drug trials, and political conspiracies."

"Okay, fair. But still. The whole childhood connection thing? Peak destiny." She nudged my shoulder. "You two are going to be sickeningly happy together. I can already tell."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"God, no. After everything you've both survived? You deserve all the happiness in the world." She leaned her head on my shoulder. "I'm really glad you found each other. Even with all the chaos that came with it."

I thought about Stefan inside, probably already deep in his contracts but glancing at the clock every few minutes to see when he could come back out. About the baby growing inside me, healthy and strong. About my mother-in-law Claire slowly building a life free from fear. About friends like Lydia who stuck by me through everything.

"Yeah," I said softly. "Me too."

The evening shadows lengthened across the garden. The daisies closed their petals for the night. And somewhere in the house, I heard Stefan's footsteps heading our way.

I smiled.

This was just the beginning.