Total pages in book: 100
Estimated words: 95013 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95013 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
“You got a problem with that or something?”
“No—”
“Then we’re good, right?”
He leaned back in the chair and stared down at his food for a while before he looked at me. “You’re trying to act like this isn’t a big deal, but it’s a pretty big deal.”
I crossed my arms as I stared him down.
“I’m honored, man.”
“Yeah?”
“Fuck yeah,” he said with a smile. “Didn’t bring a suit or anything, though.”
“Then what were you going to wear?”
He looked down at himself, in jeans and a black T-shirt. “This?”
I chuckled. “Lucky for you, I’ve got an extra, and we’re about the same size.”
Chapter 28
Aurelia
The car pulled up as close as it could to the church, and we walked the rest of the way. I wore flip-flops because I wasn’t going to walk down the main path in heels. The cobblestone was cracked in lots of places, and I wouldn’t risk breaking my ankle at the eleventh hour . . . or ever.
Sofia held my arm and helped me to the courtyard with the fountain, water spouting from the mouths of horses, right outside the entrance to the church, where Constantine was waiting for me inside, along with hundreds of people.
My friends had made the trip and were my bridesmaids, but I also included some of his cousins, so it was a big bridal party. Constantine had ten guys in his lineup, so I tried to match.
Beatrice pulled out my heels from the bag she carried and got down on her knees to help me get them on.
“Nervous?” Sofia asked as she held me up for balance.
“The only thing I’m nervous about is getting there in one piece.”
She smiled. “Like that man would ever let you fall.”
“My dress is a little tight . . .” My stomach had gotten a little bigger since my last fitting, or I’d eaten a little too much. Wasn’t sure which.
“Good,” Sofia said. “You’re growing a healthy baby for my son, and that will make him so happy.”
The double doors opened, and Rocco stepped out in a black suit and tie, dark hair and dark eyes like Constantine. He came over when he spotted us, and I noticed how silent all the girls fell the second he approached.
“You look beautiful,” he said. “Constantine sent me out to check on things. He’s impatient, as always.”
“I was running a little late,” I said. “Had a hard time getting into my dress.”
“Definitely won’t have a hard time getting it off later,” he said.
I shot him a glare, because Constantine’s mother was right there.
“Oh, come on,” he said with a chuckle. “You’re already pregnant. Here, let me help you.” He came to me and scooped me up like I weighed nothing, carrying me the rest of the way to the double doors where everyone waited inside.
The girls followed close behind, staring at Rocco as if he’d just stepped out of a magazine.
“I’ll tell Con you’ll be right in.” He put me down, then let himself back inside the sanctuary, making sure the door didn’t expose me.
“Okay, I know it’s your day and everything,” Beatrice said. “But I think I speak on behalf of all of us when we say we want to know everything about that man.”
I chuckled. “All right, will do.”
The girls stepped into the church to take their places, and Sofia stayed outside with me. She fixed my hair and adjusted my dress until I was absolutely perfect. Then she extended her arm to me. “I’m honored to walk you down the aisle, Aurelia.”
I was already a ball of excited energy, but she made my heart expand in size. “Thank you for being the best mother-in-law I ever could have asked for.”
Her eyes softened. “Seeing my son happy means the world to me. But getting a daughter-in-law whom I truly love is a special gift in itself.” She pulled the door handle, both of the ushers propped it open, and we were hit with the organ music.
Once I adjusted to the darkness of the church compared to the bright sunshine outside, I saw all the rows of people standing and staring at me.
And then I saw him.
Standing next to the pope, in his finest suit, he looked at me just the way he did across the bar that night. Rocco was at his side, but Medusa also sat at his feet with a white bow tie around her neck, our rings tucked into a small box in the band.
I stopped as I stared at him, forgetting the room and all the people in it for a second.
Sofia continued to guide me forward, and it was an out-of-body experience, walking to him as his fiancée for the last time. With every step I took, my heart pounded harder, the excitement and desperation growing exponentially. My entire life had led up to this moment, when I would heal from the wounds that had bled me dry for so long.