Chapter 299

"What were you thinking about?" Evelyn lowered her lashes, her fingers tracing invisible patterns on the bedsheet.

Nathan's gaze softened as warmth pooled in his dark eyes, his lips curving into that familiar smirk that always made her pulse quicken. "I was thinking," he murmured, leaning closer until his breath tickled her ear, "that the moment you're fully recovered, I'm dragging you to city hall in handcuffs if necessary. Grandfather's requirements be damned."

His voice dropped to that rough, possessive tone that sent shivers down her spine. He was done waiting. She would be his wife in every legal sense - her name permanently etched beside his on every document requiring a spouse's signature.

Evelyn's breath hitched. The intensity in his declaration caught her off guard, though she'd recognized his constant vigil at her bedside these past days. The way his calloused fingers had trembled when checking her temperature. The dark circles beneath his eyes that spoke of sleepless nights.

'Marrying Nathan...' The thought didn't terrify her as much as it should. But reality came crashing back, and she placed a gentle hand against his chest, creating space between them. When she remained silent, Nathan's smile faltered. "You're refusing me?" he asked, the vulnerability in his voice nearly undoing her resolve.

"It's not refusal," she countered, twisting the hospital blanket between her fingers. "But I made a promise to your grandfather. If I marry you without passing his assessment first, I'll forever be the scheming social climber in his eyes."

She met his gaze squarely now. "And let's not pretend your family isn't a political minefield. Becoming Mrs. Goldmann without understanding the battlefield? That's a recipe for disaster."

Nathan stilled, then surprised her by chuckling darkly. "Always ten steps ahead, aren't you, Zoe?" His fingers brushed a stray curl behind her ear. "Ask me anything. I'll lay the Goldmann skeletons bare for you."

He shifted, his expression turning grave. "Let's start with why Quincy, Chloe, and Harrison's parents died. They weren't just employees - they were Titus's most trusted operatives, selected from the elite training camps."

Evelyn's brows knitted together as Nathan continued, "My great-grandfather co-founded an organization with Stoslo's crown princess called the Night Banquet. Publicly known as the Goldmann Banquet."

Her breath caught. Even with her limited time in Stoslo, she'd heard whispers about the shadowy organization rumored to be the royal family's private army. "Your great-grandfather was involved with Stoslo's royalty?"

Nathan's laugh held no humor. "Why do you think Grandfather looks like a mixed-blood aristocrat?" His thumb traced the curve of her cheekbone. "Because he is. The illegitimate son of Princess Anna and Patrick Goldmann - a street rat turned royal bodyguard."

The story unfolded like something from a gothic novel - how Patrick Goldmann had clawed his way from the gutters to become the princess's personal enforcer, earning the moniker "The Princess's Hyena" for his brutal efficiency in eliminating her enemies. Their affair had produced Titus, a child the royal family refused to acknowledge.

"To protect him from court politics," Nathan explained, his voice tight, "the princess sent them to Zlokova with enough wealth to establish our family name." His jaw clenched. "The year they left Stoslo was the year both Patrick and the princess died under... suspicious circumstances."

Evelyn's fingers found his, intertwining tightly as the weight of his family's history settled between them. The Goldmann legacy wasn't just wealth - it was written in blood and royal betrayal.