The Billionaire’s Secret Quartet (Thalassa and Elowen)

The moment Alaric dropped to one knee, the room went dead silent, including Hertha, who was so caught off guard that her eyes widened in sheer disbelief. There Alaric was, on one knee, with a ring in hand, proposing to her right in the middle of what was supposed to be a joyful and

straightforward

event.

mind his dramatic gesture of proposing to her then and there! Hertha was momentarily at a loss for words. Just moments before, she had openly admitted that Alaric was the father of her two kids, aiming to smooth over the tensions between Spencer and Emmeline. The last thing she wanted was for their beautiful wedding to end on a sour note because of her. Nor did she wish for Spencer to lose Emmeline, given how hard it was for him to find someone he truly loved and wanted to marry, especially with Spencer's parents watching from the audience. They had waited three long years to see their son get married. The thought of disappointing them again was unbearable; after all, how many "three years" could they possibly have left? As Hertha's gaze met Alaric's earnest and deep eyes, her heart skipped a beat. For a brief moment, she felt overwhelmed by his intense look,

were to lash out at Alaric, telling him to get lost, everyone in attendance, watching and waiting for her reaction, would take it as confirmation that the rumors about her

accepting Alaric's proposal was beyond her emotional capacity. The unresolved issues between Alaric

weight of everyone's expectations on her. Emmeline's anxious and tearful eyes were particularly piercing, reflecting the tension and turmoil of the moment. Emmeline's father, gripping her arm tightly, seemed ready to whisk his daughter away at the slightest hint of rejection

would let her marry a man whose heart belonged to another woman. That would be like throwing her into