Chapter 350 Beneath the Surface
Behind the ballroom, hidden from the guests, the staff made their final preparations.
The private garden had been transformed into a breathtaking display of roses.
Thousands of blooms stretched across the lawn, their rich crimson petals glowing beneath carefully placed lights.
Everything had been planned down to the smallest detail.
The banquet manager walked beside Trevor with a broad smile.
"Mr. Robinson," he said, "this is one of the most romantic proposals we’ve ever helped organize."
He gestured toward the sea of flowers.
"You and Miss Bennett are such a wonderful couple. And your daughter is helping you propose? That’s absolutely priceless."
Trevor acknowledged the compliment with a polite nod but showed little interest in the praise itself.
Instead, he focused on the schedule.
"After the cake cutting," he said, "the doors open immediately."
"The flowers come in first."
"The spotlight follows."
He glanced toward the velvet box containing the engagement ring.
"And Ariel brings Rose the ring."
The manager quickly made another note.
"Understood."
Trevor looked around one last time.
"The roses arrived this morning?"
"Yes."
"They were flown in from Ecuador exactly as requested."
Trevor nodded with quiet satisfaction.
If he was asking Rose to spend the rest of her life with him...
Then every detail mattered.
She had been the one to propose marriage first.
He couldn’t allow her wedding memories to feel incomplete because of that.
Every woman deserved to feel cherished.
Even if they had already agreed to marry...
He still wanted to give her a proposal worthy of remembering.
"Make sure everything stays on schedule," Trevor said.
"I don’t want any mistakes."
"We’ll make sure it’s perfect," the manager promised.
******
Outside the curtained entrance...
Ryan stood silently in the hallway.
He hadn’t intended to overhear any of it.
It had simply been coincidence.
Through the narrow opening in the curtain, he could see endless roses filling the room.
A proposal.
A public declaration.
A celebration witnessed by everyone they knew.
Rose would become Trevor’s wife.
They would become the family everyone admired.
Ryan’s eyes rested on the flowers for several quiet moments.
Then...
Almost imperceptibly...
The corner of his mouth lifted into a faint, unreadable smile.
******
"Trevor?"
Rose’s voice echoed down the hallway.
Trevor immediately stepped through the curtain, letting it fall closed behind him before she could glimpse what lay inside.
"I’m here."
Rose glanced past him instinctively.
The curtain blocked everything.
She frowned slightly.
"Were you hiding something?"
Trevor smiled.
"I was making sure everything’s ready."
He changed the subject naturally.
"Should we go find Ariel’s classmates?"
Rose nodded.
Then checked the time on her phone.
"Ariel’s been looking everywhere for you."
Trevor raised an eyebrow.
"Oh?"
Rose folded her arms.
"She said she has something important to tell you."
"And apparently I’m not allowed to hear it."
She sighed dramatically.
"You two have secrets now?"
A rare smile reached Trevor’s eyes.
"I suppose we do."
Rose narrowed her eyes.
"So you’re not going to tell me?"
"I’m afraid not."
He shook his head.
"At least not yet."
Rose let out an exaggerated sigh.
"My own daughter is keeping secrets from me."
"I don’t know how I feel about that."
Trevor chuckled softly.
"We’ll make it up to you later."
The conversation flowed naturally between them.
Comfortably.
Their shared affection for Ariel created an effortless closeness neither of them had needed to force.
Several yards away...
Ryan heard every word.
His eyes lingered briefly on Rose’s playful expression.
Then he quietly looked away.
Without interrupting them...
He walked off alone.
******
Rose turned toward the ballroom.
The moment she took a step...
Something glittered as it slipped from her dress.
A soft metallic click echoed against the marble floor.
She looked down.
"My brooch..."
The sapphire butterfly brooch had fallen onto the floor.
She instinctively touched the neckline of her gown.
"Did the clasp come loose?"
Before she could bend down, Trevor had already picked it up.
"I’ll take a look."
He turned the brooch over in his hand.
His thumb brushed across the back.
Then...
His movement stopped.
A barely noticeable change crossed his face.
Rose noticed immediately.
"What is it?"
Trevor looked up.
His expression had already returned to normal.
"The clasp’s bent."
He gently closed the pin again.
"I don’t think it’ll stay on tonight."
Rose accepted the brooch.
"I’ll take it to be repaired."
She smiled apologetically.
"I’m sorry."
"It was your gift."
"I must’ve damaged it without realizing."
"I’ll have it restored."
Trevor watched her quietly.
"It’s only jewelry."
"If you like..."
"I’ll buy you another one."
Rose laughed softly.
"That isn’t the point."
She carefully slipped the brooch into her clutch.
"I’d rather fix this one."
Trevor nodded.
He said nothing else.
As Rose walked ahead...
His gaze remained fixed on the brooch hidden inside her purse.
His eyes darkened slightly.
The brooch he’d given her...
Wasn’t the one she’d just picked up.
Someone had switched it.
******
Near the ballroom entrance...
Rose intentionally slowed her pace.
She wanted Trevor and Ariel to have a few private moments together.
Several minutes later...
Ariel ran back toward her.
Her tiny face looked unusually serious.
Rose crouched beside her.
"What are you thinking about, sweetheart?"
Ariel puffed out her cheeks.
"It’s a secret."
Rose groaned dramatically.
"You too?"
"My own family has started excluding me."
Ariel giggled but refused to say another word.
Rose sighed in surrender.
"Fine."
"I’ll wait."
Hand in hand, they walked toward the children’s play area.
Halfway there...
Rose overheard raised voices nearby.
James.
And Alicia.
"What are you doing here?"
James asked coldly.
Alicia nervously smoothed the skirt of her dress.
"Professor Bennett invited me."
"I’m one of her graduate students."
"We’ve become pretty close."
James frowned.
"So that’s why."
Alicia hurried to explain.
"Professor Bennett has always been very kind to me."
Before James could respond, his phone rang.
He glanced at the screen.
Derick.
James answered.
His father’s voice came through immediately.
"Victoria wasn’t feeling well."
"I took her to the hospital."
"We’ll be there in about thirty minutes."
James’s face instantly darkened.
Victoria?
Why bring her here today?
Especially now...
When everyone already suspected Rose might be part of their family.
His jaw tightened.
He looked ready to explode.
Alicia instinctively stepped backward.
She had rarely seen her brother this angry.
At that moment...
James noticed Rose approaching with Ariel.
The tension in his face eased almost immediately.
"Rose."
"Ariel."
Ariel recognized him right away.
"Hi, Uncle James."
The innocent greeting struck him harder than she could possibly know.
If Rose truly was his sister...
Then Ariel really was his niece.
He had spent years wishing for exactly this.
Yet now...
The word Uncle only filled him with guilt.
Before James could reply...
Alicia’s attention shifted to Ariel.
She smiled brightly.
"She’s adorable."
She bent down to gently pinch Ariel’s cheek.
James reacted instantly.
He grabbed Alicia’s wrist before she could touch the little girl.
His grip wasn’t rough.
But it was firm enough to stop her.
Alicia stared at him.
"James..."
Rose looked equally confused.
James released Alicia without explanation.
Instead, he looked at Rose.
"I brought Ariel a birthday gift."
"I hope she likes it."
Rose sensed something strange between the siblings.
Very strange.
But today wasn’t the time to ask questions.
Especially now...
With the possibility that the Taylors might actually be her biological family...
Everything felt uncertain.
She kept a polite distance.
"Thank you."
"I’m sure she’ll appreciate it."
Taking Ariel’s hand, she turned to leave.
Almost immediately...
She found herself face-to-face with Ryan and Oliver.
Without slowing down...
She looked past them.
As though they weren’t even there.
Oliver awkwardly raised a hand.
"Hi, Rose..."
She walked by without responding.
He scratched his head sheepishly.
"...Well."
That was embarrassing.
Then he looked past her.
"Mr. Robinson."
Ryan followed his gaze.
Trevor had just caught up.
He stopped directly in front of them.
"Mr. Knight."
Trevor extended a courteous smile.
"Thank you for coming."
Ryan returned a polite nod.
"My pleasure."
The exchange lasted only seconds.
Perfectly civil.
Perfectly professional.
Yet beneath the surface...
Neither man looked away first.
Trevor studied Ryan carefully.
Almost too carefully.
Because one question refused to leave his mind.
The butterfly brooch he’d given Rose...
Had been switched.
And at that moment...
Ryan Knight was the only person Trevor couldn’t rule out.