Chapter 19
By dawn, the audio clip had gone viral.
Vincent Harrow’s voice, crisp and unmistakable, echoed across news stations and social media.
“…this time, it’s not just your reputation I can bury. It’s her.”
Every second of that cold-blooded threat was now evidence. Public, permanent, undeniable.
Within hours, federal investigators launched an official probe. Journalists scrambled to dig deeper into Harrow International’s decades of silence. Former employees came forward. Names, bribes, shell companies—it all started unraveling like a web on fire.
Collin stood in his office, watching the news play out on the giant wall-mounted screen. Linsey sat beside him, holding his hand tightly.
“You did it,” she whispered.
He turned to her. “We did it.”
But peace wasn’t immediate.
The threats didn’t stop overnight.
Security was tripled. Linsey’s phone was swept for tracking. Their penthouse was scanned top to bottom. Harrow still had allies in high places, people with power and nothing to lose.
But Linsey refused to be intimidated.
She agreed to go public—again.
This time, not as the betrayed bride or the brave wife.
But as a survivor who had every right to stand at the center of her own story.
The interview aired live.
Cameras rolled as Linsey faced the journalist calmly, wearing a soft beige suit, no jewelry, no glamor—just honesty.
“Why did you stay with Collin Riley?” the reporter asked.
Linsey looked into the camera. “Because I stopped waiting for perfect love and started believing in real love.”
The reporter leaned forward. “And his secrets? The past?”
“He gave me the truth before the world could twist it. That matters,” Linsey said. “What matters more is what he did after. He chose to stand beside me when it would’ve been easier to disappear. He didn’t just say he loved me. He proved it.”
“Do you believe he’s changed?”
“I think he never had the chance to be himself before. But now? He’s not hiding. Neither am I.”
The segment ended with Linsey holding Collin’s hand again, her head resting gently on his shoulder. No performance. Just peace.
That night, back at home, Collin stood out on the balcony with a glass of wine, staring at the glowing skyline.
Linsey joined him, barefoot and quiet.
“It’s strange,” he said. “I spent years building walls. Protecting myself from failure. From pain. From you.”
“And now?” she asked.
He looked at her. “Now, I’d tear down cities just to walk beside you.”
She leaned her head on his arm. “That might be the most dramatic thing you’ve ever said.”
“Guilty.”
She laughed softly. “So what happens next?”
Collin turned toward her fully. “Whatever we want. But I was thinking…”
He pulled something from his jacket pocket—another small box.
“Didn’t we promise to start over?”
Linsey raised a brow. “You’re proposing again?”
He opened it.
This time, the ring wasn’t just beautiful. It was engraved on the inside.
“Our truth. Our choice.”
Her heart fluttered.
“Collin…” she whispered.
“Will you marry me—again?” he said, a small smile on his lips. “But this time… let’s make it official, with no headlines, no chaos. Just you and me.”
She nodded, tears sparkling in her eyes.
“Yes. A thousand times, yes.”
And as he slipped the ring onto her finger, Linsey knew this wasn’t just the end of a battle.
It was the beginning of the life they finally chose—with nothing left to hide.