Chapter 7: Honeymoon
819 Words
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The first thing Adrian did after I said yes?
Booked two tickets.
No destination.
No return date.
No phones.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“Somewhere with no WiFi,” he said. “And no Victor.”
He tossed both our phones into a drawer. Locked it.
“Key’s gone.”
I stared at him. “You’re serious.”
“As a heart attack,” he said. Then he kissed me.
“Pack a bag. We leave in 2 hours.”
---
*The Private Jet.*
I’d never been on one.
Leather seats. Champagne.
Adrian in sweatpants.
Me in leggings and his hoodie.
“Cole Ventures can run without me for 2 weeks,” he said.
“And your mom?”
“Already set up,” he said. “Nurse. Chef. 24/7. She’s good.”
He took my hand.
“So. Mrs. Cole.”
“Fiancée Cole,” I corrected.
“Even better,” he said. And kissed my knuckles.
The plane took off.
I fell asleep on his shoulder.
---
*Destination: A cabin. In Montana.*
Snow. Mountains. Lake.
No neighbors.
No signal.
Just wood. Fire. And quiet.
“It’s beautiful,” I whispered.
“I bought it 3 years ago,” he said. “Came here once. After... after I left you.”
I looked at him.
“I needed to remember who I was without the company,” he said. “I think about you the whole time.”
We dropped our bags.
He built a fire.
I made pasta. Burned it.
He laughed. Actually laughed.
For the first time, I saw him.
Not CEO. Not billionaire.
Just Adrian.
---
*Day 3: The Lake.*
We didn’t check email.
Didn’t check news.
Didn’t check anything.
We hiked.
We cooked.
We talked.
About college.
About his dad.
About the gallery.
About the first time he saw me and thought _I’d die for her_.
“You never said that,” I said.
“I’m saying it now,” he said.
At night we sat by the fire.
No TV. No distractions.
Just us and the stars.
He taught me how to play chess.
I beat him twice.
He kissed me after each win.
---
*Day 7: The Storm.*
Another storm. But different.
No panic. No power outage.
Just snow hitting the windows.
We were in bed. All day.
Reading. Napping. Talking.
“Do you ever think about what if?” I asked.
“What if what?”
“What if you didn’t leave. What if we got married 4 years ago.”
He was quiet.
“Then we’d have a kid by now,” he said. “And a dog. And you’d be yelling at me for working too much.”
I laughed. “Probably.”
He pulled me closer.
“I don’t regret it,” he said. “Because the you I have now is the you who chose me. Not the contract. Me.”
I cried.
He wiped my tears.
Then he kissed me. Slow.
No rush.
No cameras.
Just us.
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*Day 10: The Proposal... Again.*
We were outside. Snow everywhere.
He stopped walking.
Got down on one knee. Again.
In the snow.
“Zara,” he said. “I asked you in a kitchen. I’m asking you here.
Will you marry me. For real. In front of everyone. No contract. No board.
Just you and me and your mom and maybe a dog.”
I was laughing and crying.
“Yes,” I said. “Yes, you idiot.”
He picked me up. Spun me.
We fell in the snow.
Kissing. Laughing. Freezing.
Best day of my life.
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*Day 14: The Last Night.*
We packed.
Reluctantly.
“I don’t want to go back,” I said.
“Me neither,” he said. “But we have a wedding to plan.”
He pulled me to him.
“Thank you,” he whispered. “For giving me a second chance.”
I kissed him.
“Thank you for taking it.”
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*Back in NYC.*
The second we landed, phones exploded.
400 texts. 200 emails.
Headlines:
*ADRIAN AND ZARA MISSING FOR 2 WEEKS*
*ARE THEY DEAD? MARRIED? BROKEN UP?*
Adrian ignored all of it.
He took me straight to my mom.
She opened the door. Saw the ring.
Screamed.
Hugged us both.
“About time,” she said.
That night, back at the penthouse.
No paparazzi. Adrian’s security handled it.
We stood at the window.
City lights.
His arms around me.
“Ready?” he asked.
“For what?”
“For real life,” he said. “The messy, loud, beautiful kind.”
I leaned back into him.
“Yeah,” I said. “I’m ready.”
His phone buzzed.
David: `Wedding venues. 12 options. Pick one.`
Adrian looked at me.
“Beach? Garden? Courthouse?”
I smiled.
“Surprise me.”
He kissed my neck.
“I always do.”
---
- Writer
