Total pages in book: 41
Estimated words: 37733 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 189(@200wpm)___ 151(@250wpm)___ 126(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 37733 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 189(@200wpm)___ 151(@250wpm)___ 126(@300wpm)
"You look beautiful, tesoro."
She rolls her eyes but doesn't argue. Instead, she stomps toward the bathroom, muttering under her breath about annoying men. I smile, watching her go. She isn't half as annoyed as she likes to pretend.
Once I hear the shower running, I start making calls.
It doesn't take long to track down my guy.
"You need it this morning?" Aero Doukas complains. "You're asking for a fucking miracle, Brambilla."
"I'm aware. I'm also willing to pay for a miracle. Can you make it happen or not?"
"Depends on whether the police are involved," Aero says. "I can make an ID that'll pass visual inspection to someone untrained, but if a cop gets ahold of it, it's a different story. I need more than a few hours to work that kind of magic."
"The police aren't involved." Cillian can't call them. He can't afford to have them crawling through every inch of his home, not when he's killed God only knows how many people inside. They'd drag him out in cuffs long before they started looking for Finley.
"Fuck. Send me her photo. I'll get what you need," Aero says. "Double the usual."
"When will it be ready?"
"Give me until noon."
"Eleven."
"Noon."
"Cazzo," I growl. "Fine."
"Meet at the usual spot?"
"No. The dress shop on Olive Street downtown."
"The dress shop?"
"The bridal shop."
He whistles. "You getting fucking married or something, Brambilla?"
"Something like that."
"Well, goddamn. I'm going to mind my fucking business and not ask any questions before I end up in the middle of some bullshit I don't want to be in the middle of, but congratulations."
A smile touches my lips. Aero is an unusual man, but he's been useful to me over the years. He doesn't work for the mafia. He runs his own thing. We all have our own networks. We never know when we may need them. Sometimes, the best thing we can do for the family is call in outside resources. Sometimes…we need those same resources for ourselves.
No one initiates with plans to betray. Honor matters to every single one of us who swear the oath. It's what keeps us together when everything else is falling the fuck apart around us. But sometimes, circumstances change, and we're forced to change with them. We adapt, or we die.
I'm an adaptive motherfucker.
I'm not a disloyal one, though. Rafe may think I've betrayed my oaths. But I see it differently. I've done everything I could to keep them. I didn't leave to avoid them. I left to avoid breaking them. And I'm going back for the same reason.
"See you at noon," I tell Aero and then disconnect.
Unlike yesterday, I don't have dozens of missed calls and texts. I have only one from an unknown number.
Don't go home.
I don't have to ask to know who sent it. I know.
Coda.
Fuck. I guess it's begun, then.
Chapter Nine
Finley
Domani stands beside me in front of the judge, his fingers laced through mine, speaking his vows in that deep rumble I love so much. His voice doesn't waver or shake. He's calm and confident, promising to love, honor, and cherish me for the rest of his days.
When it's my turn to repeat the same words, my voice trembles with emotion. I mean them with every fiber of my being. It's scary how intensely I love this man and how fast it crept over me. But I'm not fighting it anymore, and I'm done questioning it. If he wants my soul, it's his to take. He can have my heart, my body, every inch of me.
He holds my gaze captive as he slips the ring we picked out together on my finger, emotion swirling in his eyes. Tears swim in mine, momentarily blinding me. I don't hear what the judge says after that. All of my attention is on the man in front of me. My husband. My lover. My world.
Somehow, despite the sword dangling over our heads, he made today perfect. I have a dress, flowers, and a beautiful ring. He's in a tux, looking like a freaking model. I never dreamed about a wedding, but this is everything I could have wanted. It's everything.
"By the power vested in me by the State of Missouri, it is my great pleasure to pronounce you man and wife. Mr. Brambilla, you may kiss your beautiful bride."
Domani cups my cheek, stepping toward me. His lips come down on mine. He kisses me with fierce devotion, pouring every part of himself into it as the ladies from the front counter clap politely.
"Io e te per sempre," he whispers against my lips.
"You and me forever," I whisper back in English.
He smiles, pressing his forehead to mine before he wraps me up in his arms. The judge steps forward to congratulate us and then shuffles us off to the side of his desk to sign the license. Within an hour of entering the Marriage License office, we're officially husband and wife. We stop long enough to file the license, and then head out.