I approached him with wonder. âHate? Why would I hate you, Ethan?â
He took a deep breath, and when I lifted the blanket â thatâs when I trembled. Not out of fear, but out of pity, and the weight of the truth that greeted me.
Ethanâs right leg was missing. A prosthetic leg was what he was hiding.
âI was in an accident two years ago,â he said softly. âWhen I lost my leg, my fiancĂ©e left me. Since then, I felt like I had lost my purpose. My parents⊠they were afraid I would completely lose the will to live. So when they saw how you treated me without judgment, they said you were the only person who could make me happy.â

I teared up. I didnât know what to say. âEthan⊠even without a leg, youâre still you. You donât have to be ashamed.â
He smiled, the first time I had seen him genuinely smile. âThatâs why they gave you the mansion. Not as payment, but as thanks â because you gave me a reason to live again.â
I walked closer to him and held his hand. âI donât need the mansion, Ethan. All I want is you â who you are, not what you have.â
And that night, as we held hands, I felt the warmth of true love â without lies, without doubt.
After a few months, we learned to laugh again, travel, and build a family in that mansion â not as a reward, but as the start of a new life.
One day, while we were watching the sunset on the balcony, he hugged me and whispered, âIf it weren’t for you, I might have been lost in the darkness a long time ago.â
I smiled and replied, âAnd if it werenât for you, I might not have known that sometimes, the most beautiful gift is the person who is willing to love you no matter what.â
The mansion, which once seemed like a symbol of wealth, became a home for two hearts that were wounded but healed â not because of money, but because of true love.
And thatâs when I realized: The reason they gave me the $2 million mansion wasn’t to pay me â but to remind me that sometimes, love is a treasure worth more than any amount in the world.
