The Billionaire's Intern (Maya Thompson) novel Chapter 452

Chapter 199: Legacy and Lead-1

Damien looked up, a faint crease forming between his brows.

+25 Points

“I… didn’t mean to overhear,” Jamie said, his voice tightening with emotion. “But I heard what you

said. About the ring.”

Jamie placed his hand against his chest, his fingers wrapping around the pendant of his necklace. His eyes glistened, shadowed by memories of a harder time. With practiced precision, he clicked a hidden latch on the back of the ornament-one invisible to the naked eye-and gently removed a

small, brilliant stone.

He held it out to Damien, his hand steadying as the light caught the facets. Damien took it,

stunned. “Jamie… what’s this?”

Jamie smiled gently, a sad but beautiful light in his eyes. “When I got sick and our finances started draining fast, Maya had no choice but to pawn Mom’s jewelry so we could survive. She held on to

them as long as she could, but when her back was pushed against the wall, she had to let them go.

Everything except our parents’ wedding bands.”

He gave a short, quiet laugh. “She still has those. She told me she’s holding onto them so that when I get married, I’ll have them for my future wife. Honestly, I think she said it to make me feel

guilty-to make sure I didn’t end up with the wrong woman.”

Jamie’s expression turned solemn as he looked from the stone to Dahlia. “But she didn’t know that Dad gave me this stone on my eighth birthday. He said it was our little secret. He wanted me to use it for an engagement ring, too. He’s the one who modified this pendant to keep it hidden.”

He looked Damien directly in the eye. “But I don’t want my future wife to have it. I want Maya to

have it. Dad told me this was the first diamond he ever bought with his own money for Mom… but

he ended up giving her a different one.”

Jamie glanced at Dahlia, a new understanding dawning on him. “I didn’t think much of it before, but now… I think he refused to give it to her once he knew who she really was. Maybe it was pride.

Maybe he felt like the first thing he truly earned wasn’t enough for a woman of her status.”

“But for Maya… it’s perfect.”

“It’s the first piece of our father’s heart.”

He nudged the stone toward Damien. “Take it. Add it to the ring.”

Damien didn’t answer right away.

The weight of the stone in his palm felt far heavier than it should have-like it carried more than

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Chapter 199 Legacy and Lead 1

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memory, more than sentiment. It carried sacrifice. It carried years of quiet suffering he hadn’t been

there to witness.

His fingers curled slightly around it, careful, almost reverent.

For a brief moment, the world he controlled so effortlessly-fell away.

This… this was something he couldn’t calculate.

He lifted his gaze to Jamie, studying him not as Maya’s younger brother, not as someone under his

protection-but as a man who had endured, who had chosen, who was now entrusting him with

something irreplaceable.

“You’re sure?” Damien asked quietly.

Jamie didn’t hesitate.

“I’ve never been more sure about anything,” he said.

There was no trace of doubt in his voice-only a quiet certainty that made something shift in

Damien’s chest.

Jamie exhaled slowly, his grip tightening briefly around the now-empty pendant before letting it fall

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