Ch 256 - The Proposal

Alex was so happy he picked Debbie up and swung her around in his arms.

Several tourists noticed Alex and Debbie and remarked on how happy they looked.

"Put me down!" Debbie said, giggling.

Alex glanced down at her, his hair brushing over her cheek. She blushed, and Alex thought she looked adorable.

He carefully lowered her to the ground and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. "Debbie, will you marry me?" he whispered.

Debbie hadn't expected that, and she froze for a moment, staring at him. Then she smiled.

"Will you marry me?" Alex asked again.

Debbie lowered her head and peeked up at him. "Yes," she said, speaking softly.

"What?" Alex asked, overjoyed. "What did you say?" He had heard her, but he wanted her to say it again.

"Weren't you listening?" Debbie asked, teasing him.

"I was listening," he said, laughing. "You said you would marry me!" He took her hand. "Can we get married as soon as possible?"

"As soon as you like," she said. "But I need to deal with David first."

"Okay, wife," he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Let's go and have dinner!"

At the word "wife", Debbie blushed even harder, but she was thrilled.

They ate dinner and spent time together until seven o'clock in the evening, and then Alex took Debbie back to her home in Arlington Heights. Charles and Lindsey were sitting in the living room, waiting for them.

"Hello," Alex said, leading Debbie to sit on the sofa.

Lindsey met his gaze, and Alex remembered how she had stood in front of him to prevent Reginald's security team from shooting him. He was grateful, but she looked so sad that he looked away, unable to maintain eye contact.

"Alex," Charles said. "You're clearly making my Debbie very happy." He watched as Alex and Debbie held hands and smiled at each other.

Alex looked at Charles. "I'm in love with Debbie," he said, his tone serious. "I've asked her to marry me, and she said yes. Will you give us your blessing?"

Lindsey stiffened and stared at Alex.

Charles was overjoyed. Once the Clifton family in Baltimore discovered Debbie was with him, the Cliftons were sure to retaliate. But if she married Alex, then the Ambrose family could protect her.

He slapped his hand on his knee. "I think you're an excellent match!" he said, grinning at them. "You have my blessing."

Alex and Debbie beamed at him.

"But Alex, everyone considers Debbie to be David's wife," Charles reminded him. "There ceremony wasn't complete, but everyone assumed it would be finished soon. That's likely to cause a lot of problems, so I hope your family will be able to shield you from that."

If the Drake family kicked up a fuss, the news would soon reach Baltimore.

"Oh…" Alex frowned. He had been disowned by his family, so he knew they wouldn't help. Had Charles only agreed to the marriage because he thought Alex had the backing of a powerful family? If so, and Alex admitted he had been disowned, would Charles take back his blessing?

"It doesn't really matter, does it?" Alex asked. "After all, Debbie isn't well known around here, so David's reputation shouldn't suffer." He didn't want to admit that he was no longer part of the Ambrose family.

Charles frowned. He doesn't know about Debbie's past, he thought. But he's clearly in love with her, so it should be okay to tell him.

"Alex, I'm worried about the Clifton family," he said.

The Clifton family? Alex wondered. What do they have to do with Debbie?

Then Charles told him about his love for Cynthia Clifton and how her father, Jessop, had disapproved. He explained what had happened to their daughter, Debbie, and how Cynthia had died trying to escape her family.

Alex had believed that Debbie was a simple girl with a nondescript background. He would never have guessed that she was also the granddaughter of Jessop Clifton.

"I was in a hurry to get Debbie married because I didn't want to attract the attention of the Clifton family," Charles said. "They're extremely powerful, and I'm not sure if they have me under surveillance. I'm hoping that if you marry Debbie, we can keep this quiet. Once the Cliftons find out, my family will be in trouble, but I don't care. I just want my daughters to be safe, so please ask your family to keep Debbie's whereabouts a secret."

Lindsey and Debbie sat beside Charles and took his hands, offering comfort.

"I understand, but…" Alex said, trailing off. "Last night, the Ambrose family disowned me, so I can't use their influence."

Everyone gaped at him in shock.

"I told the Drakes about it earlier, and you didn't seem to care," Alex pointed out.

Charles remembered Alex saying that, but he had thought Alex was joking.

"What am I going to do?" Charles asked, covering his face with his hands. Debbie was already the talk of Washington, D.C., and if no one had the power to suppress the stories, then the Clifton family would soon become aware of her whereabouts.

"Dad, it's okay," Debbie said, trying to soothe him. "Don't worry about the Cliftons." She frowned. She hated the Clifton family for causing her mother's death.

"Yes, we'll protect you," Lindsey whispered.

**

Jessop Clifton sat within the family mansion in Baltimore.

His son, Rufus, knocked on his office door and rushed in, holding a picture. Jessop didn't even look up.

"Dad," Rufus said, placing the picture on the desk.

Jessop glanced at the photo with a complete lack of interest. But then he looked closer and saw a jade pendant, and he snatched up the photo to examine it. His breath came quicker as he grew excited.

"Look at the fourth person from the right," Rufus prompted him.

Jessop's eyes widened. "It can't be…" he said, his voice trembling.

"Dad, it's not my sister," Rufus said with a sad smile. "It's not Cynthia. It's her daughter. The baby we thought was dead!"

The picture had been taken at David and Debbie's wedding, and it showed Debbie about to pick up the jade pendant that was lying on the ground.

"It's her!" Jessop exclaimed. "Did you find my granddaughter? Where is she?"

"She's with Charles Marvel," Rufus said.

Jessop stared at him, clenching his fist in anger.

"I've only just received this picture, and I'm not sure what happened," Rufus said. "It appears that David Drake, the eldest son of the Drake family, married Leona Marvel, who is actually Debbie. She arrived at Charles Marvel's house at least four months ago, but we don't know how she got there."

[Bang!]

Jessop slapped his hand down on the desk, knocking several objects to the ground. "Does Marvel have a death wish?" he asked, cursing.

In the twenty years since Cynthia had died, Jessop had never stopped searching for information on Debbie. He had thought Carla would take Debbie to Charles, and he had sent someone to watch the Marvel house, but Debbie had never arrived there.

Jessop had demanded that Charles inform him immediately if Debbie turned up, warning him that failure to do so would result in retaliation.

Jessop had never shared any information with Charles. For the first five years, he had sent people to monitor the Marvel family, but they had found nothing. But now he only sent people to Washington, D.C., for a few days every six months. The last report had stated that there was no sign of Debbie, so Jessop hadn't realized that Debbie had been with Charles for four months.

"Send some people to Washington, D.C., to deal with Charles," Jessop ordered, staring at Rufus. "And then bring Debbie back."

"Dad, I heard that the wedding didn't go well," Rufus said. "Many people were injured, including famous fighters like Ryder Dixon, Marco Moreno, and Damian North. And there was another martial arts expert, Cliff Munson, at the wedding. He was also badly hurt, but no one knows who beat him."

"Oh…" Jessop was surprised. "Are you sure your information is accurate?"

"Yes, I'm certain," Rufus said. "Even if the Drake family are trying to suppress the news, people talk, and the other powerful families must know what happened. Which makes me wonder, why are we only hearing about this now?"