Chapter 343

Chapter 343

Sara's Point of View

The email to Versace sat drafted on my laptop, cursor blinking accusingly. Two simple words that could change everything: "I decline."

My finger hovered over the send button when Josh burst into my room, waving a paper printout.

"What is this?" His voice cracked with emotion. "Helena just showed me your response to Versace."

I closed the laptop slowly. "I'm not going to Milan."

"Like hell you're not." He crossed the room in three strides. "This is the opportunity of a lifetime!"

"Some things matter more." I met his gaze steadily. "Some people matter more."

"Don't." His hands clenched at his sides. "Don't put this on me. Don't make me the reason you give up your dreams."

"I'm not giving up anything." Standing, I moved closer to him. "I'm choosing what I want most."

"What you want most is Milan." Frustration colored his voice. "It's all you've talked about since starting modeling - breaking into the European market, building an international career."

"That was before."

"Before what? Before us?" He ran agitated hands through his hair. "Sara, our relationship isn't worth sacrificing your future for."

The words hit like physical blows. "Isn't it? Because from where I stand, no amount of success would mean anything without you to share it with."

"Don't be naive-"

"Naive?" Fire sparked in my chest. "Is that what you think this is? Some schoolgirl choosing love over career because she doesn't know better?"

"That's not what I-"

"Then what exactly did you mean?" I stepped into his space. "Because it sounds like you think I'm incapable of knowing my own heart."

His expression softened. "I think you're letting love blind you to opportunities you deserve."

"No." I caught his hands before he could retreat. "I'm letting love show me what really matters. Family. Home. The life we're building here."

"A life that will mean nothing if you resent me later for holding you back."

"Is that what this is about?" Understanding dawned. "You're afraid I'll blame you?"

He couldn't meet my eyes. "Three years is a long time to wonder 'what if.'"

"Then let me make this perfectly clear." I framed his face with my hands, forcing him to look at me. "I choose you. Not because I have to, but because I want to. Because no city, no contract, no amount of fame is worth losing what we have."

"Sara-"

"The quadruplets called me crying last night." My voice shook slightly. "Begging me not to leave them. And I realized - success means nothing if it costs me the people I love."

"They'd understand-"

"Would they? Would you?" Tears spilled over. "Because I wouldn't. I wouldn't understand choosing an opportunity over the family we've built. Over game nights with the kids and Sunday dinners with Helena and morning kisses with you."

His resolve wavered. "I just want you to have everything."

"I already do." I pressed closer, letting him feel my heartbeat. "Right here. With you. With our crazy, beautiful family."

"But Milan-"

"Will still be there." My thumbs brushed his cheeks. "Other contracts will come. But this time with you, these moments we're building - they're irreplaceable."

"I can't be the reason you stay." His voice cracked. "I won't let you sacrifice your dreams for me."

"Then it's a good thing you don't get to make that choice." Steel entered my tone. "This is my decision. My life. And I choose us."

"Even if staying means giving up international recognition?"

"Even if staying means never modeling again." I smiled through my tears. "Though let's not be dramatic - Helena's already talking about launching her own fashion house with me as the face."

That startled a laugh from him. "Of course she is."

"See? Solutions exist that don't require leaving everything I love." My fingers traced his jaw. "I fought too hard for this happiness to abandon it now."

"You're the most stubborn woman I've ever met." But his arms finally came around me.

"Good thing, too." I melted into his embrace. "Otherwise your noble self-sacrifice routine might have worked."

He buried his face in my hair. "I just want you to be happy."

"I am happy. Here. With you." I pulled back enough to meet his eyes. "Can you accept that? Accept that I'm choosing this life with my eyes wide open?"

The battle in his expression slowly settled into understanding. "You really mean this."

"With all my heart." I kissed him softly. "Milan doesn't stand a chance against what we have here."

His arms tightened. "I love you. So much it terrifies me sometimes."

"Good." I smiled against his lips. "Because you're stuck with me now. No noble gestures of letting me go for my own good."

"No more running," he agreed. "No more pushing you away."

"Promise?"

"Promise." He sealed it with a kiss that made my toes curl. "Though Helena's going to be insufferable about launching that fashion house now."

I had to laugh. "Let her. At least this way I get both, career success and the family I love."

"Speaking of family..." He glanced at his watch. "The quadruplets' dance recital starts in an hour. You ready to tell them you're staying?"

My heart swelled imagining their joy. "More than ready."

As we headed downstairs hand in hand, I knew I'd made the right choice. Milan might offer fame and fortune, but nothing could replace the life we'd built here.

Some dreams changed. Some loves were worth sacrificing everything for.

And in choosing Josh, choosing us, I hadn't given up anything at all.

I'd gained everything that truly mattered.