" Gran!" Jesse called out.
The woman took off her sunglasses slowly. Very slowly. Like it was a dramatic soap opera reveal.
Alina blinked. "Excuse me-*Gran*?"
Jesse stared like he'd seen a ghost. "It has been so long."
The woman-mid-sixties, elegant, and now slightly smirking-adjusted her shawl. "Oh, sweet boy. I came to see if your ridiculous contract marriage had turned into something real."
Alina's jaw dropped. "Wait. YOU'RE the person who has been lurking in the shadows?!"
"I prefer the term 'observing lovingly from a respectful distance.'"
Jesse turned red. "Gran, seriously you almost gave her a heart attack!"
"Of course! I had to be sure the woman you were falling for wasn't just another Alina-in-disguise criminal like your father."
That hit a nerve.
"Gran," Jesse said quietly, eyes hardening. "He's gone. And I'm *not* him."
Alina looked between them, her expression softening.
Grandma sighed. "I know, my boy. But you're still carrying his shadow. Always looking over your shoulder, afraid to be happy." She touched his cheek gently. "It's okay to trust. Even a billionaire wife with too many shoes."
Alina snorted. "Excuse me-five closets is a normal number."
The tension melted into chuckles.
But Jesse still looked distant, his mind drifting. Alina caught his hand.
"Hey," she whispered. "You're not your father. And I'm not afraid of ghosts. Just. Old ladies."
He smiled faintly. "Especially the ones in the silver shawl."
Grandma scoffed. "I'll have you know I was a spy in my day. You two are *terrible* at surveillance."
Mrs. Kane walked in. Seeing that the atmosphere was okay, she smiled and went into the kitchen. Jesse avoided looking at her.
" Gran, an old lady like you needs some rest."
" No way. I am not that old." Gran shook her hip to the side, making a strange noise. She groaned.
" Okay, dear. Only because I felt like it."
They walked her back to her hotel, the mood lighter now. But as they parted ways, Grandma gave Alina a look. "He needs you. Not just as a business deal. He needs someone who sees him."
"I do," Alina said firmly.
"And I'll be watching."
"Not if I buy you blackout curtains," Alina muttered.
Later that night, Jesse stood on the balcony while Alina sipped wine.
"You okay?" she asked.
He nodded. "Just... thinking."
"About her or him?"
"Both. She's the only family who stuck around. And my mom too. But my dad... sometimes I worry the blood matters."
Alina walked up and slid her arms around his waist. "What matters is the choice you make. And you've chosen good, Jesse. You've chosen me."
He chuckled. "You mean the bossy CEO with five closets?"
"Damn right."
He kissed her cheek. And for a moment, the weight of the past felt lighter.
Until Jesse pulled away and said, "...also, Gran might've bugged our room."
"WHAT?!"
"Just a hunch."
She groaned. "I'm calling a tech team."
"Don't bother," Jesse smirked. "She probably used old-school spy toys. We just need to find the plant... or check your closet. That's where she'd hide."
Alina blinked. "The audacity."
And just like that, the billionaire and her streetwise husband were on their knees in the closet, laughing, searching for bugs, and maybe-just maybe-falling a little more in love.
****
A message came up on Mrs. Kane's cell phone:
-He is out.
Mrs. Kane shrieked.