Chapter 5 - The Safehouse
Three days later, Chloe was officially discharged from the underground medical unit.
Instead of returning to her small apartment above the diner, Arthur had her brought to the Romano family’s private estate in the rolling hills of Oak Brook, twenty miles outside the city. The estate was a sprawling stone fortress surrounded by ten-foot security walls, state-of-the-art surveillance cameras, and twenty elite Romano guards stationed around the clock.
Chloe stood in the middle of the master bedroom on the second floor. The room was massive, featuring a king-sized bed, a fireplace, broad windows overlooking private gardens, and a nursery suite connected directly through an archway.
Her younger brother, Toby, a nineteen-year-old college student with messy brown hair, was sitting on a plush leather sofa in the corner, eating a sandwich from a silver tray.
"I still can't believe this is real," Toby said, looking around the room with wide eyes. "Chloe, the guy who bled on our tomatoes owns half of downtown Chicago. And now you’re living in a palace."
"It’s not a palace, Toby," Chloe said, sitting down on the edge of the bed, rubbing her swollen lower back. "It’s a safehouse."
"Same difference," Toby grinned. "Leo—the chief security guy with the cool scar—told me I can use the heated indoor pool whenever I want. Plus, he hired two full-time guards to watch my dorm at school so I don't get kidnapped by rival mobsters. Honestly? Best sister ever."
Chloe chuckled, shaking her head. "I’m glad my dangerous love life is working out so well for your social life."
The bedroom door opened, and Arthur stepped inside. He had stripped off his suit jacket, wearing a crisp white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing his muscular, tattooed forearms.
When Toby saw Arthur, he immediately stood up, brushing sandwich crumbs off his jeans. "Hey, Mr. Romano."
"Toby," Arthur nodded politely. "Your car is waiting downstairs to take you back to campus. My driver will stay with you."
"Awesome. Thanks, Arthur," Toby said, giving Chloe a quick hug before heading for the door. "Call me later, Chlo! Don't let the mob boss boss you around!"
Once Toby was gone, the room fell into a cozy, intimate quiet.
Arthur walked over to the bed, setting down a small velvet box on the nightstand. He sat beside Chloe, taking her feet into his lap, and began gently massaging her swollen ankles with broad, expert hands.
Chloe leaned back against the pillows with a soft sigh of relief. "Oh God. How are you so good at that?"
"I asked Dr. Vance what causes swelling in the third trimester," Arthur smiled, his thumbs applying perfect pressure to her arches. "He gave me a medical manual. I read it cover to cover last night."
Chloe looked at him, her heart melting. This was the terrifying mafia boss who had dismantled the Croft empire in forty-eight hours—sitting on the edge of a bed, rubbing his pregnant girlfriend's feet because he had memorized a medical book.
"You don't have to pamper me, Arthur," she said softly.
"I’m going to pamper you for the rest of your life, Chloe," Arthur replied, looking up at her with intense, dark eyes. "You and our baby are the center of my world now. Everything else—the family business, the politics, the money—it’s all secondary."
He reached over and picked up the small velvet box from the nightstand, popping it open.
Inside rested a stunning vintage ring featuring a massive cushion-cut canary yellow diamond surrounded by a halo of platinum and smaller white diamonds. It was elegant, radiant, and undeniably breathtaking.
Chloe’s breath caught in her throat. "Arthur... what is this?"
Arthur took the ring from the box, looking up into her hazel eyes with absolute sincerity and vulnerability.
"Seven weeks ago, I almost made the biggest mistake of my life by standing at an altar with the wrong woman," Arthur said softly. "I tried to build a future based on fear and politics. But you showed up, Chloe. You bled for me. You saved my life, and you brought me back from the dark."
He slid the heavy diamond ring onto her left ring finger. It fit perfectly.
"I don't want a grand mafia wedding at a cathedral with political guests and security standoffs," Arthur whispered, taking her hand and pressing a tender kiss against the back of her fingers. "I just want you. I want to wake up next to you every morning, watch our children grow up in this house, and spend every day making up for the pain I caused you. Will you marry me, Chloe? For real this time?"
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Tears of joy brimmed in Chloe’s eyes, spilling over her flushed cheeks. She reached out, pulling Arthur down by his collar, pressing her lips firmly against his in a deep, passionate kiss that answered his question before she even spoke the word.
"Yes," she whispered against his lips, smiling through her tears. "Yes, Arthur. I’ll marry you."
