Updated Mar 22, 2026 • ~2 min read
Chapter 21: The Proposal (Real One)
JASPER
The spontaneous proposal was perfect.
But Maren deserves more.
So I plan.
Week thirty.
Ten weeks until due date.
I buy a ring.
Vintage. Art deco. Diamond and sapphire.
(Her birthstone.)
Book a private dinner.
Rooftop restaurant.
Just us.
Tell her it’s a business dinner.
She suspects nothing.
***
She arrives in a maternity dress.
Navy blue. Flowing. Beautiful.
Belly prominent now.
Thirty weeks pregnant with our Isla.
“This is fancy for a business dinner.”
“Only the best for my business partner.”
We order.
(She gets everything she’s been craving. Steak. Pasta. Chocolate lava cake.)
We talk about the agency.
New clients. Revenue projections. Hiring plans.
Normal couple-who-runs-a-business-together conversation.
Then dessert arrives.
And the ring is on top of the chocolate cake.
She freezes.
“Jasper—”
“I know I already proposed. And you said yes. But you deserve the full thing. The planning. The ring. The moment.”
I get down on one knee.
Right there on the rooftop.
“Maren Ross. You are the most incredible woman I’ve ever met. You’re smart, fierce, beautiful, and brave. You challenge me. Support me. Love me despite my family’s history. And you’re giving me the greatest gift—our daughter Isla. I want to spend forever with you. Not just because of the baby. But because you’re my partner. My best friend. My everything. Will you marry me?”
She’s crying.
Happy tears.
“Yes. Again. Always yes.”
I slide the ring onto her finger.
It fits perfectly.
She pulls me up.
Kisses me.
And everyone on the rooftop applauds.
(I may have told the staff.)
“I love you,” she whispers.
“I love you too. Future Mrs. Ross-King.”
“Or Mrs. King-Ross.”
“Or we both just keep our names.”
“Or we create a whole new name.”
We laugh.
Details don’t matter.
What matters is: we’re getting married.
For real.
END OF CHAPTER 21
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