Aurelia's POV
The first time I saw Vincent and Raze standing together, I understood why the reveal had felt impossible.
They looked almost identical.
But they weren't the same.
Vincent's stillness came from years of learning to control every part of himself.
Raze's quietness came from years of trying not to be noticed.
Their smiles were different.
Their laughter was different.
And when they stood beside each other, the differences became more obvious than the similarities.
Ava came to meet us a few days after Raze had explained everything.
She looked nervous.
Raze stood when she entered.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then he said, "I'm sorry."
Ava stared at him.
"You let me believe you were Vincent."
"I know."
"You told me you loved me."
"I did."
"You promised we'd get married."
"I meant it."
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Then why didn't you tell me who you were?"
Raze took a breath.
"Because I was afraid that if you knew my family, you'd become part of what they were doing to me. And because I was ashamed of how much I had let fear decide my life."
He looked at her.
"But I was wrong to make that decision for you. You deserved the truth."
Ava looked towards Vincent.
Then at me.
Finally, she turned back to Raze.
"I was so sure I had lost him."
Raze stepped closer, but stopped before touching her.
"I'm here."
She looked at him for a long moment.
Then she reached for his hand.
"Don't disappear again."
He held her hand.
"I won't."
I looked at Vincent.
He was smiling.
Not because the situation had been easy.
Because his brother was alive, and the woman Raze loved had finally found him again.
Sometimes, the truth hurt before it healed.
But it was still the truth.
And it had brought two people back to each other.
The Unlocked Door
Charlotte and Elena arrived at my house that Saturday afternoon without warning.
I should have been suspicious.
They had both messaged me several times that morning, asking whether I would be home.
I had assumed they wanted to catch up.
I had not assumed they were planning an interrogation.
Vincent was at my house when they arrived.
We were in the living room, enjoying the first genuinely quiet afternoon we'd had in weeks.
He had been trying to convince me to take a break from reading.
I had been trying to convince him that reading was a perfectly acceptable way to spend an afternoon.
The argument had become a kiss.
Then another.
And then we'd forgotten the book entirely.
The doorbell rang.
We separated.
I looked at Vincent.
He looked at me.
"Did you lock the door?"
"I thought you did."
We stared at each other.
Then the door opened.
"AURELIA, WE BROUGHT—"
Silence.
Charlotte stood in the entrance.
Elena stood behind her.
Both stared at us.
Vincent was beside me, his hair untidy and his expression unusually uncertain.
I was trying to look like someone who had not been kissing her fiancé two seconds earlier.
It was not going well.
Charlotte slowly lowered the bag she was carrying.
Elena blinked.
Then Charlotte said, "Well."
I closed my eyes.
"No."
Elena looked at Vincent.
Then at me.
Then back at Vincent.
"Oh, this is excellent."
"Elena," I warned.
She grinned.
"You didn't lock the door?"
"Apparently not."
Charlotte crossed her arms.
"How long has this been going on?"
I stared at her.
"Define this."
"Don't lawyer your way out of this conversation."
Vincent, who had defended clients against far more intimidating people, appeared to be reconsidering every decision that had led him to my living room.
Charlotte noticed.
She smiled.
"Mr. Montclair, are you nervous?"
"No."
His knee was bouncing.
Elena pointed at it.
"Your leg disagrees."
I burst out laughing.
Vincent looked at me with betrayal in his eyes.
"You're enjoying this."
"Yes."
Charlotte sat down.
"Right. Start talking."
I sighed and sat beside Vincent.
"We're engaged."
Both women froze.
Then they screamed.
Actually screamed.
Vincent flinched.
I covered my ears.
"CHARLOTTE! ELENA!"
Charlotte grabbed my hand.
"YOU'RE ENGAGED?"
Elena stared at the ring.
"YOU WENT TO ITALY AND CAME BACK ENGAGED?"
"Yes."
"AND YOU DIDN'T TELL US?"
"I was going to!"
"When?"
I hesitated.
She narrowed her eyes.
"Exactly."
Vincent cleared his throat.
"For what it's worth, I did ask her to tell you."
I turned towards him.
"Traitor."
He smiled.
Charlotte looked at him.
"Are you taking good care of her?"
His expression softened immediately.
"I'm trying to."
Elena studied him.
"And you understand that she will argue with you about absolutely everything?"
"Yes."
"That she will steal your food?"
"Yes."
"That she will pretend not to be upset when she is clearly upset?"
Vincent looked at me.
"That one is an ongoing area of research."
I smacked his arm.
Both women burst out laughing.
Then Charlotte reached across and squeezed my hand.
"We're happy for you."
Elena nodded.
"Really happy."
I smiled.
"Thank you."
For a moment, the room settled.
Then Elena glanced towards Vincent.
"Now, tell us about the wedding."
Vincent's knee started bouncing again.
I looked down.
Then up at him.
"Oh, this is going to be fun."
Part II — The Second Proposal
Vincent's POV
I had survived the revelation that my brother was alive.
I had helped bring my father to justice.
I had finally found a way to imagine a future that didn't revolve around preparing for loss.
And yet, nothing had prepared me for Aurelia Vale deciding she wanted to propose to me.
She told me nothing.
Which should have been my first warning.
The second was when Austin asked whether I had any plans for Friday afternoon.
The third was when Mr. Sanchez informed me that my schedule had been cleared for a "private office event."
I stared at him.
"What event?"
He smiled.
"You'll find out, sir."
I narrowed my eyes.
"Who authorised this?"
"Miss Vale."
Of course.
Of course she had.
On Friday afternoon, I entered the main conference room and found the entire team waiting.
Austin stood near the front.
Evelyn was trying very hard not to laugh.
Charlotte and Elena were there too.
And Aurelia stood in the middle of the room, looking far too pleased with herself.
I stopped.
She smiled.
"Hello, Mr. Montclair."
I looked around.
"What is happening?"
Austin gestured towards the room.
"An important professional development opportunity."
I stared at him.
Evelyn covered her mouth.
Aurelia walked towards me.
"Vincent, when you proposed to me in Italy, you told me that you wanted to choose me every day for the rest of your life."
I looked at her.
She took my hands.
"I've been thinking about that. And I realised that I don't just want to say yes to your future. I want to ask you to share mine, too."
My throat tightened.
She smiled.
"So, Vincent Montclair, the man who stole a photograph from my wallet, argues with me about breakfast, and still thinks he can win every argument—"
Austin coughed.
Evelyn elbowed him.
Aurelia continued.
"Will you marry me?"
For a moment, I couldn't speak.
She took out a ring.
Simple.
Beautiful.
Chosen with care.
I looked at it.
Then at her.
Then I laughed, because the alternative was allowing everyone in the room to watch me cry.
"Yes."
Her expression brightened.
"Yes?"
I took her hands.
"Yes, Aurelia. Of course I'll marry you."
She slipped the ring onto my finger.
The room erupted.
Austin cheered.
Evelyn clapped.
Charlotte and Elena hugged each other.
Mr. Sanchez, standing near the door, nodded with the satisfaction of a man whose administrative work had finally contributed to something worthwhile.
Aurelia laughed and threw her arms around me.
I held her close.
"You planned all this?"
She smiled against my shoulder.
"Every detail."
I kissed her forehead.
"You are unbelievable."
"You love me."
"Unfortunately."
She pulled back.
"Excuse me?"
I grinned.
"Fortunately."
She kissed me.
And as the people we loved cheered around us, I understood something I had never quite understood before.
A proposal wasn't a victory.
It wasn't a prize.
It was a question asked by one person and answered freely by another.
A promise made by two people who knew that love wasn't the absence of uncertainty.
It was the decision to build something together anyway.
Part III — The Wedding
The wedding was everything we wanted.
Not because it was perfect.
Because it was ours.
Aurelia wanted a ceremony that felt warm and meaningful, surrounded by the people who had become part of our lives.
I wanted to see her walk towards me.
Everything else was negotiable.
When the day finally arrived, I stood at the front and waited.
Austin adjusted my tie for the third time.
"You look nervous."
"I'm fine."
"Your hands are shaking."
"It's cold."
"It's indoors."
I stared at him.
He grinned.
"Relax. She said yes twice."
I exhaled.
"That is not helping."
"It should."
Then the music began.
And Aurelia appeared.
For a moment, the room disappeared.
I saw only her.
The woman who had challenged me from the beginning.
The woman who had chosen me without surrendering herself.
The woman who had held my hand through the truth about my family and reminded me that fear did not have to decide my future.
She reached me.
I took her hands.
She smiled.
"Hello, fiancé."
I laughed softly.
"Hello, Little Swan."
The ceremony passed in a blur of promises, laughter, and tears I would deny having shed.
When it was time to speak, I looked at her and said the only thing that mattered.
"I cannot promise that life will always be easy. I cannot promise that I'll never be afraid or that I'll always know the right thing to say."
Her eyes shone.
"But I promise to listen. To learn. To respect the woman you are and the woman you continue to become. I promise to stand beside you, not in front of you, and to keep choosing you even when choosing you requires me to grow."
She squeezed my hands.
Then it was her turn.
"A long time ago, I met a man at a bus stand in the rain. I had no idea that he would become the person I wanted beside me for the rest of my life."
She smiled through her tears.
"I used to think love was something that might take away my freedom. You taught me that the right love makes room for it. You never asked me to become smaller so you could feel bigger. You simply stood beside me and let me be myself."
She took a breath.
"I promise to challenge you when you're wrong, laugh at you when you're ridiculous, and love you when life is difficult. I promise to keep choosing you, not because I need you to complete me, but because I want to build a life with you."
I could barely see through my tears.
She smiled.
"And I promise to remind you that you are my favourite person, even when you're being an absolute idiot."
The room laughed.
I did too.
Then we exchanged rings.
And when the moment came, I kissed my wife.
My wife.
The words felt impossible.
Wonderful.
True.
Later, when the celebration had settled into music and conversation, I found her standing beneath the lights.
I took her hand.
"Mrs. Montclair."
She raised an eyebrow.
"Careful. I might get used to that."
I kissed her knuckles.
"I hope you do."
She leaned closer.
"Good. Because I intend to make you say it every day."
I smiled.
"Every day, then."
And I meant it.