Goodbye You Never Loved Me novel (Martha and Stefan) novel Chapter 558

The next day, news of Stefan and Martha's upcoming wedding was leaked, and it was none other than Stefan who revealed it.
As Martha saw the news, Stefan called her phone. She answered with a smile.
"Did you see the news?"
Martha replied with a teasing tone, "Mr. Harrison, isn't it against the rules to announce your marriage without informing the bride first?"
"Oh? Does my bride want to back out?"
"That's not certain."
"Well, you don't have a chance now. Open the door."
Upon hearing this, Martha hesitated for a moment before opening her office door.
There stood Stefan holding a bouquet of pure white lilies with a smile on his lips.
"How did you come here?" she asked.
"Do you have time this afternoon? I'll take you somewhere," he replied.
Martha nodded with a smile but noticed the bouquet in his arms and her expression changed slightly.
"Is this... for me?" she asked as he handed over the flowers gently.
"I remember that these are your favorite flowers," said Stefan softly as he looked into her eyes tenderly.
Martha didn't immediately take them from him but instead teased him, "Is this your belated proposal after announcing our engagement publicly?"
"If you like it, then yes," replied Stefan warmly.
"No one proposes using lilies instead of roses," joked Martha playfully while accepting them finally in her hands.
"I'll accept them for now but don't forget to make up for it later by giving me roses too."
"Okay."
Stefan took hold of her hand and lightly caressed her ring finger.
"Do you think something is lacked here?"
Martha looked into his eyes which sparked with passion; she instantly understood the hidden message.
"Yeah, so what should we do?"
"Let's go."
Stefan chuckled and left the Doyle Group while holding her hand.
Apart from having another wedding ceremony together again, he wanted to repeat all those previous steps they had taken before too; considering that as their new beginning.
...
Stefan brought Martha to their seaside villa which he had bought especially for them earlier on; however after that, she disappeared from his life.
Returning here once more made him feel emotional.
He held onto Martha's hand tightly while saying clearly, "This time around, I won't let you leave me again".
When Martha saw the villa in front of her, her eyes flickered and her brows furrowed slightly. But it was only for a moment before she returned to normal.
"Why did you bring me here?" She hooked his arm and asked with a smile.
"You like seaside villas. After we get married, we'll move here together. We'll watch the sunrise and sunset, the ebb and flow of the tide. It's your wish, and I remember it," Stefan said as he suddenly turned to her.
He took her right hand with his left hand while taking out a ring from his pocket with his right hand.
"This is what I didn't have time to put on for you before, Martha. Fortunately, we still have a lot of time in the future."
The diamond on the ring was dazzlingly bright; it was clear that this was made by a master.
Martha's lips curled up slightly.
Inside the ring were their initials - proof of their love for each other.
She squinted slightly as she spoke in a low voice, "This ring..."
"What's wrong?" Stefan asked as he gently held onto Martha's finger.
"Nothing, it's very beautiful," Martha replied, shaking her head
Stefan held onto Martha's ring finger tightly while asking earnestly, "You said earlier that you would wear this ring at our wedding but then you ran away. So now I want to put it on for you, can I?"
Martha widened her eyes slightly without answering him while Stefan waited patiently for an answer from her.
"If you still have any concerns about this, I can wait."
He thought maybe he should take it slow.
After all, they had experienced so much together in Z Country before returning to A City.
Perhaps Martha hadn't adjusted herself yet.
He had waited so long already so waiting another few months wouldn't make much difference anyway.
"No... no!" exclaimed Martha excitedly as she grabbed hold of Stefan's hand which he wanted to withdraw.
Shaking her head vigorously, she continued, "I don't have any concerns! It's just that..."
She looked at him holding that shiny ring – who wouldn't like or want something like that? But...
"Stefan, let us buy another new one instead."
Upon hearing this request from Martha, Stefan paused momentarily before responding, "Okay, if you don't like it, then let us change it."
"It's not that I don't like it. But this one belongs to our past memories, whereas what I hope is for our future together will be completely new."
"Okay, I'll listen to you," Stefan said.
He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and whispered, "After the wedding, we'll move in together. This will be our new home. You, me, and Jimmy - we'll never be apart again."
Martha's body stiffened at his words.
After a moment of silence, she spoke softly. "Stefan, if we're starting anew, then I want to say goodbye to the past completely. Let's sell this seaside villa."
Stefan's eyes flickered with confusion as he asked, "But don't you want to live by the sea?"
"I need to let go of the past. My mother loved the ocean but she's gone now. Seeing it only brings back painful memories for me."
"Okay," Stefan tightened his embrace around her.
...
As they drove back into town Stefan took Martha straight to a jewelry store so they could pick out their wedding rings.
Looking at all of the dazzling options on display made Martha smile.
"Thank you, Stefan, you're really kind," she said before planting a kiss on his cheek while standing on tiptoes.
The sales clerk saw how well-dressed they were and immediately recommended their most expensive designs.
Within moments, four or five high-end limited edition rings were presented before Martha for her consideration; each one tried on by an attendant.
Martha held up her hand and asked Stefan, "Which one do you think looks best?"
"As long as it's for you, then any ring is beautiful," he replied.
The sales clerk chimed in with flattery, "Madam, your husband-to-be is truly wonderful."
Martha sweetly smiled before choosing a design that was vastly different than what had been shown earlier.
"I like this one best; can we change the initials inside into 'S&M' instead?" she giggled while asking Stefan's opinion.
Naturally he agreed; now that he had regained what was lost, anything that came out of Martha's mouth would be granted except leaving him again.
"Stefan, I'm already looking forward to our wedding."
"In three days time we'll take our bridal photoshoots together. Don't worry, I will give you a perfect wedding."