Dumped My Cheating Ex. Now I'm Sleeping Next to a Billionaire CEO novel Chapter 1668

Emmy's heart melted completely, and she had no desire whatsoever to fight him for the first word. She obediently snapped her own ring box shut and clutched it in her palm. At that moment, her chest was overflowing with an indescribable surge of surprise and emotion. She truly never expected that James would share the exact same thought, choosing this moment of the New Year's Eve countdown to propose to her.

She lowered her eyes, unable to stop the layer of moisture pooling in them. She simply stood there, gazing fixedly at James as he knelt on one knee. Accompanied by the sky full of fireworks and the crackling sparklers, the man faded his smile and held the ring up with both hands. His gaze was intensely focused and deeply affectionate, locking onto her completely. He looked at her with a solemnity that suggested he was etching a brand into her heart, and he began to speak softly.

"A few years ago, we were bound together by a marriage of mutual convenience. Back then, I never imagined that one day I would genuinely fall in love with you, and fall so deeply. Over these years, we have had our misunderstandings, we have argued, and we have even faced life and death. I almost lost you by a fraction of an inch. But you still walked into my life, step by step, and walked right into my heart." His voice carried the steady weight of years passed, laced with a faint tremble. "It was you who taught a man who did not understand love, did not know how to love, and was afraid to love, how to slowly care for someone and how to be gentle. You showed me what a family is, and it was you who gave me a real home. You gave birth to Joey and Dolly for me, and then Manny. You gave your most beautiful youth and your hardest years completely and unconditionally to me and to this family."

At this point, a sincere trace of guilt surfaced in the depths of the man's dark eyes. "Yet, I have constantly delayed giving you a proper proposal and a wedding that belongs to you." He stared straight into Emmy's tear filled eyes. "I owe you too much. I owe you a ceremony, I owe you my solemnity, and I owe you a beginning witnessed by the whole world."

James extended the ring a little further toward her. His eyes were red, his gaze burning and resolute. "Before, it was a contract. Now, it is my true heart. Before, it was making do. Now, it has to be you. So today, at this moment when the old year turns into the new, I want to propose to you again. I love you, and for the rest of my life, I only want to spend it with you."

The man's voice broke completely. "Honey, will you marry me one more time? Let me use a wedding to proudly bring you home. Let me turn all the things I owe you from the past into a lifetime of exclusive favoritism and protection, meant only for you."

A scalding tear slipped from the corner of Emmy's eye, landing on her white plush shawl and vanishing instantly. Her eyes were terribly red, her vision entirely blurred by tears, yet the smile on her lips was more radiant than the fireworks exploding overhead. She sniffled, her voice thick with emotion.

"Actually... I also have a lot of things I want to say to you at this moment." She looked at him, her gaze gradually clearing and filling with determination. "In the beginning, I thought you were just a hotheaded, and perhaps slightly poor, firefighter. I had misunderstandings about you, prejudices, a lack of understanding, and I was even extremely guarded around you. I never once thought I would fall in love with you, let alone fall so helplessly in love."

Emmy's tears fell uncontrollably, yet her eyes shone astonishingly bright. "But later I realized that whatever your identity was, it simply did not matter. What matters is that you are reliable, responsible, and steady. You always do what you promise. You made me realize that in this world, there really is someone I can unconditionally trust, rely on, and surrender my true heart to."