Chapter 16
Collin stood by the tall windows as the last rays of sun painted gold over the skyline. The world outside was still loud, still chaotic. But inside him, something had gone very still.
She had stood up for him.
Not just in private. Not in whispers. But on the biggest stage, against the very people who had tried to tear them both apart.
He’d watched her reclaim her story—not as the victim of betrayal, but as the woman who chose her own ending.
And she chose him.
He turned as the elevator doors opened behind him.
Linsey stepped out.
She wasn’t smiling. She wasn’t angry either. Just… calm.
Collin didn’t rush to her. He waited.
She looked around the room. It was neat, untouched, like time had paused here. Her gaze landed on him.
“You watched?” she asked.
He nodded. “Every second.”
She walked closer, slow and deliberate, until they stood face to face.
“I meant every word,” she said. “But that doesn’t mean everything’s fixed.”
“I know.”
She studied him. “You built your life on hiding things. Building walls. Choosing what to show the world. I’m not asking you to tear it all down overnight…”
She reached out and placed her palm against his chest.
“…But I need you to let me in. Not just when it’s convenient. Not just when you need saving.”
Collin’s voice was barely a whisper. “You’re the only one I’ve ever wanted to let in.”
He reached into his jacket pocket, pulled out a small black box.
Her breath caught.
“This isn’t about saving face,” he said softly. “Or proving something to the world. It’s just us now. And I want to start over—with nothing between us but truth.”
He opened the box.
Inside was a simple, elegant diamond ring. Not the flashiest. Not the biggest. But timeless.
He knelt before her—not for the cameras, not for damage control.
Just for her.
“Linsey Brooks… will you marry me again? This time not as strangers or survivors—but as two people who’ve already seen the worst in each other and still decided to stay?”
Tears filled her eyes, but she smiled. “You didn’t even wait a day.”
“I’ve waited five years,” he said. “I’m done waiting.”
She laughed through her tears, then nodded. “Yes.”
Collin slipped the ring onto her finger, and the second it settled there, he rose and pulled her into a tight embrace.
And for the first time, their kiss wasn’t rushed or desperate or drowning in pain.
It was quiet. Steady. Real.
They stood there, holding on—not because they were broken, but because they had finally stopped running.
The media didn’t need to report it.
The world didn’t need to understand it.
This part was just for them.
Later that night, Linsey curled up beside him on the couch. Rain began tapping against the glass again, soft and slow.
“Do you regret anything?” she asked.
He looked at her. “Only the years I wasted thinking I wasn’t good enough for you.”
She smiled, head resting on his shoulder. “You’re not perfect, you know.”
“I’m working on it.”
And she believed him.
Because now, finally, Collin Riley was no longer hiding behind wealth or reputation or a haunted past.
He was simply a man in love.
And this time, he wouldn’t lose her.