Chapter 16: A Marriage Chosen by Two Hearts

The next morning, Avery woke before sunrise.

For the first time since becoming Mrs. Foster, she didn't feel uncertain about where her life was heading.

She walked into the kitchen and found Elliot already there.

He was making coffee.

"You're awake early," Avery said.

"So are you."

"I couldn't sleep."

"Why?"

She smiled softly.

"I was thinking about us."

Elliot placed the coffee cup on the counter.

"So was I."

"And?" Avery asked.

He stepped closer.

"I want to start over."

"Start over?"

"Yes."

"Not as two people forced together by circumstances."

"Not as a billionaire and the woman who became his wife because she needed money."

"I want us to be two people who choose each other."

Avery's eyes warmed.

"I want that too."

Elliot reached for her hand.

"Then there's something I need to ask you."

"What?"

"Will you stay with me?"

Avery smiled.

"I never left."

He laughed quietly.

"You know what I mean."

"Yes," she said softly.

"I'll stay."

He gently pulled her into his arms.

For several moments, they simply stood there.

No fear.

No anger.

No pressure.

Only certainty.

Later that morning, Elliot accompanied Avery to the hospital to visit her father.

The older man looked healthier than he had in months.

He smiled when he saw them enter together.

"You two look different," he said weakly.

Avery laughed.

"Different how?"

"Closer."

She glanced at Elliot.

"Maybe we are."

Her father smiled knowingly.

"Good."

"You deserve someone who chooses you every day."

Elliot looked at him seriously.

"I intend to."

Avery's heart warmed.

After the visit, she and Elliot walked through the hospital garden.

"My father likes you," Avery said.

"That's good."

"You want his approval?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because he's important to you."

She smiled.

"You're becoming impossible to dislike."

"I have a reputation to maintain."

They both laughed.

That afternoon, Elliot made another unexpected announcement.

He called the Foster family together.

Rosalie, Marcus, and several senior relatives gathered in the main hall.

Elliot stood beside Avery.

"I have something to announce."

Everyone became silent.

"Avery and I are no longer considering divorce."

Rosalie's face immediately brightened.

"We're staying married by choice," Elliot continued.

"And from today onward, Avery will have full authority over the family foundation and the social projects we build together."

One of the relatives smiled.

"Congratulations."

Rosalie walked toward Avery and hugged her.

"Welcome home, truly this time."

Avery's eyes filled with tears.

"Thank you."

Elliot watched them with quiet satisfaction.

He had never expected his mother and wife to become so close.

That evening, he took Avery to a quiet restaurant overlooking the city.

"Another surprise?" she asked.

"Maybe."

Their table was surrounded by candles and flowers.

A small envelope rested beside Avery's plate.

"What's this?"

"Open it."

Inside was a set of property documents.

Avery looked confused.

"This is a house."

"A small one near the coast," Elliot explained.

"I bought it because you once told me you'd love to live somewhere quiet for a few weeks every year."

Avery stared at him.

"You remembered that?"

"I remember everything you tell me."

She smiled.

"You really listen."

"Only when you're talking."

She laughed.

Then her expression softened.

"Thank you."

"For remembering the little things."

"They're not little things to me."

Elliot reached across the table.

Avery placed her hand in his.

"You know," she said quietly,

"When I agreed to marry you, I thought I was choosing survival."

"And now?"

"Now I think I accidentally chose the best thing that ever happened to me."

Elliot smiled.

"Accidentally?"

"Don't get too confident."

"Too late."

They laughed together.

As the evening continued, Avery realized something important.

She was no longer afraid of the future.

The past had finally stopped controlling her.

Cole's betrayal no longer defined her.

Wanda and Cassandra no longer had power over her.

The forced marriage no longer felt forced.

Because somewhere along the way...

A marriage created by desperation had become a relationship built on trust.

And the man she once thought she'd only have to tolerate...

Had become the man she never wanted to lose.