The Heiress Gambit-Chapter 94- The Real Proposal

AUTHOR

The silence left by Shunsuke’s screaming departure was profound. It was a vacuum slowly filled by the soft, shaky breaths of the remaining board members and the distant sound of city traffic from below. The empire had fallen, not with a whisper, but with a scream, and now the dust was settling.

Paige was the first to break the quiet. She turned to Yamada, her eyes wide with a mixture of awe and respect. The cool CEO mask was gone, replaced by the genuine admiration of a student for her master.

"You’re a genius," she said, her voice soft but clear. "An absolute genius."

Yamada offered a small, humble smile, a rare crack in his own composed facade. "It was merely a series of logical steps."

From beside her, Reomen let out a low, appreciative chuckle. He looked at Yamada with the respect of one brilliant strategist for another. "Logical, yes. But the efficiency was... beautiful. I’m almost impressed."

It was the highest praise Reomen Daki could offer.

Paige then looked directly at Yamada, her expression turning deeply sincere. "Thank you," she said. The two words were simple, but they carried the weight of her freedom, her victory, and her future. She wasn’t just thanking him for the shares or the boardroom coup. She was thanking him for believing in her when her own father had not.

Yamada gave a slow, respectful bow of his head. "It was my honor, Paige-san."

Her gaze then drifted across the room to the doorway where her family stood. Payton, leaning against Denki, met her sister’s eyes. There were no words. There didn’t need to be. In that single, acknowledging nod from Paige, a lifetime of rivalry and pain was laid to rest. It was a nod that said, I see you.

We are done with this. We are free. Payton’s eyes welled with tears, and she gave a small, grateful nod in return.

Denki’s arm tightened around Payton, his own nod to Paige one of fierce loyalty and relief. Barbara, her face still stained with tears, offered a tremulous, proud smile before she gently guided her daughter and the man she loved out of the room, leaving the conquerors to their victory.

With the drama over, the formalities wrapped up quickly. The shell-shocked board members mumbled their congratulations and filed out, casting nervous, reverent glances at the new power that sat at the head of the table. Soon, the vast, opulent room was empty save for two people.

The silence was now theirs.

Reomen moved to Paige’s side. His hand found the small of her back, his touch familiar and possessive, a grounding force after the storm. He looked down at her, his dark eyes reflecting the city skyline through the window.

"We did it, Black Cat," he murmured, his voice a low rumble, stripped of its usual sarcasm. It was filled with something raw and real. "The battle we’ve been fighting since the day you walked into my office... it’s over."

Paige leaned into his touch, the solid strength of him the only thing that felt entirely real. The high of victory was already giving way to a deep, bone-melting exhaustion. She had gotten her revenge. She had reclaimed her name. She had saved her family from the monster who bore it.

She looked up at him, her brilliant, fierce partner in everything. "It’s over," she echoed, the words a prayer.

Reomen bent his head and pressed a soft, lingering kiss to her forehead. It was not a kiss of passion, but of promise. A seal on their shared victory, and a vow for the future they would now build together, from the ashes of the world they had burned down.

– – –

PAIGE

The door clicked shut, sealing us in the quiet of the conquered boardroom. The ghosts of my father’s screams were gone, replaced by the steady, solid sound of Reomen’s breathing beside me. I leaned into him, my head against his chest, listening to the strong, sure beat of his heart. It was over. The fight was finally, truly over.

And then he moved.

In one swift, fluid motion, he was gone from my side. I blinked, confused, as I watched him sink down onto one knee right there on the polished floor of the Rimestone Co. boardroom.

My heart, which had just begun to calm down, shot right back into my throat.

He looked up at me, a familiar, wicked little smirk playing on his lips, but his dark eyes were soft, so incredibly soft. In his hand was a small, black velvet box I hadn’t even seen him holding.

"You know," he began, his voice a low, sarcastic drawl that did nothing to hide the raw emotion beneath it. "I never did properly propose the first time. It was more of a... business negotiation. A merger proposition. So I suppose I’m making up for it."

My hands flew to my mouth. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. All I could do was stare at him, at this impossible, magnificent man, kneeling in the ruins of my past.

He clicked the box open.

The air left my lungs in a single, shocked gasp. Nestled inside was the most breathtaking diamond I had ever seen. A huge, perfect princess cut, it caught the light from the window and threw it back in a thousand brilliant sparks.

But it was the band that made my eyes sting with tears. It was a delicate weave of silver and warm, rich brown gold, twisting together inseparably, just like us.

He reached for my left hand, his fingers gentle but sure as they closed around mine.

"Paige Isumi Rimestone," he said, his voice dropping the sarcasm, becoming clear, serious, and filled with a love so deep it felt like a physical force. "My brilliant, fierce, beautiful Black Cat. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife? For real this time?"

A sob mixed with a laugh burst from me. I was nodding, my head bobbing up and down frantically, tears now streaming freely down my face, messing up my perfect, victorious makeup. I didn’t care.

"Yes," I choked out, the word sounding too small for the universe of feeling inside me. "Yes, Reomen. A thousand times, yes."

He was on his feet in an instant, pulling me into his arms. His mouth found mine, and this kiss was nothing like the one in the penthouse. That had been a promise.

This was a claiming, a celebration, a seal on our future. It was passionate and deep, filled with all the fire and love and battles we had shared. I kissed him back with everything I had, my arms wrapping around his neck, holding on as if he was the only real thing in the world.

When we finally broke apart, both of us breathless, I whispered against his lips, "I love you."

"I love you too," he murmured, his forehead resting against mine. Then his tone shifted, becoming playful, though I could feel the absolute seriousness underneath. "Good. So we’ll get married this weekend."

I pulled back, my eyes wide. I laughed, swatting his arm. "You’re insane! This weekend? Reomen, that’s impossible!"

But he just looked at me, that infuriating, knowing smirk firmly back in place. He wasn’t joking. He was completely, utterly serious. He’d waited long enough, fought hard enough, and he wanted what was his. Now. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

The reality of it crashed over me—the ring, the proposal, the wild, impulsive timeline. It was so perfectly him. So perfectly us. A fresh wave of overwhelming love and happiness hit me, so strong it made my knees weak.

I stopped shaking his arm. Instead, I threw my arms around his waist and buried my face in his chest, hugging him tightly. I didn’t have any words left. What could I say? No to the man who had just given me back my entire world? Yes to the chaos? Yes to the madness?

I held him, breathing in his familiar scent, feeling the solid proof of his love against my cheek. And in that hug, I said everything I couldn’t put into words. Yes. To everything. Always yes.