Page 1 of Beloved Beauty

Chapter 1

Magnolia Steel

Yes. The word is still on my lips.

One minute, I was a girl taking an after-dinner walk with the man she loves. The next, I was his fiancée.

He looked at me like I was already his wife, and in an instant, the rest of my life made sense. So no, I didn’t hesitate. Didn’t overthink. Didn’t allow fear to crawl in and take over.

I said yes to the man who broke through every defense I swore I’d never let fall, who saw past my armor into the softest, most hidden parts of me. The man who cracked open every fear and filled the hollow with something steady, something safe. The man who made me believe in forever and desire a life big enough to hold more than the two of us. A life with fingerprints on the walls and laughter echoing down the hall.

We’re lying face-to-face, and I’ve never been more at ease. My body’s humming—boneless, breathless, skin flushed from every dirty thing he just did to me. His leg hooks around mine, while his hand rests on my hip, fingertips caressing my skin. His eyes don’t stray. They’re fixed on mine, steady and unblinking.

I’m wearing his ring.

We’re engaged.

Engaged.

The word feels dangerous in my mouth, as though it’s something I might break if I’m not careful. My fingertips brush the band, needing to feel it again to believe it is real.

I lift my hand, letting the diamond catch the warm glow of the lamp on the nightstand. It’s enormous—cushion-cut and surrounded by a delicate halo of smaller diamonds, all set in platinum. Elegant. Expensive. Probably worth more than I’d earn in thirty years of working—if I worked every day and didn’t take a single breath off.

It’s more than I ever imagined I’d wear on my finger. More than I ever thought I was allowed to hope for. But it’s perfect. Not because of the size or the setting or the way it looks like it belongs in a glass case under museum lighting.

It’s perfect because he picked it for me.

Because Alex Sebring saw through every version of myself that I tried to hide from him and still saw that I was worthy of this.

Worthy of him.

“You’re thinking too loud, favorite.”

“I can’t help it.” I shift a little, my skin sticking to his with the leftover sheen of sweat and satisfaction. “There’s a lot happening.”

“I asked you to marry me and you said yes. Everything else can wait.”

Except it can’t. Not really. Not when the future is pressing in around us, curling its fingers around the corners of this perfect moment, hungry for answers.

I study his face—his sharp jaw dusted with scruff, that faint scar above his brow, his hair messy from my hands.

There’s so much of him to love. And somehow, he’s mine.

“You and I have a lot of big decisions to make.” Life-altering decisions.

“I’ve been thinking about our future a lot these last few weeks. And I’ve decided. I want to stay here.”

“Alex––”

“I mean it, favorite. You’re only getting started—your business, your vision. If being here helps you grow that, we’ll stay. If it takes you somewhere else, I’ll go with you. Wherever you lead, I’m there.”

My throat tightens. “That’s not fair to you.”

His brow creases. “Why is it not fair?”

“Because you have so much in Australia. Your career. Your family and cultural roots. You belong there, Alex.”

He opens his mouth to argue, but I don’t let him.

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