Mama ran her fingers through my curls, making sure my soft hair hung down my back perfectly. I considered hiring someone to do my makeup, to put fake eyelashes on my eyelids and blush on my cheeks. But when I remembered Bones loved me the way I was, made love to me the way I was, I realized he wouldn’t want me to look like a different person. So I kept everything light, subtle eyeshadow, lipstick, and foundation.

Something more natural.

Mama looked at my appearance in the mirror as she stood behind me. “You look perfect, sweetheart.” She grabbed the back of my train and adjusted it behind me, making sure it looked just right.

“Thanks, Mama.” I picked a formfitting dress, pearl white with sleeves made of lace. The color contrasted against my olive skin, and the diamond necklace my mother loaned me sparkled. I didn’t wear heels, choosing to go barefoot so I could feel the grass underneath my feet as I walked to my future husband.

My mother gripped both of my shoulders then kissed me on the cheek. “Griffin is a very lucky man.”

“And I’m lucky that he thinks so.”

“Are you nervous at all?” She walked to the window and peeked out onto the lawn, seeing the white rose petals on the ground and the white arch my father built with his bare hands. It was the same place where my parents got married, my brother as well. Now it seemed to be a family tradition.

My dress felt tight against my stomach and my heart rate wouldn’t slow down, but that was mere excitement. “No. There’s not a doubt in my mind he’s the man I want.”

She smiled at me. “I didn’t ask if you had doubts. Just asked if you were nervous.”

“Were you nervous when you married Father?”

“Yes,” she answered immediately. “But your father is an intense man. It seemed like I couldn’t walk to him fast enough. He was always disappointed with how slowly I was moving. Being loved by a man like that can be difficult, but very rewarding. Griffin seems to have a lot of the same qualities.”

Bossy. Controlling. Possessive. Yes, he had all the qualities that made him a little crazy. “He does.”

“So be nervous as long as you can. It’s the happiest day of your life—and it’s one of my mine.”

Father came in next, wearing a black suit and tie. His gaze moved up my dress until he settled on my face. A slight smile appeared on his lips, along with a hint of pride. “You’ve never looked more beautiful, tesoro.”

“Thanks, Father…”

He kissed me on the cheek then wrapped his arm around my mother’s waist. “I think we did a good job, Button.”

“Yes,” Mama whispered. “Couldn’t have asked for a better daughter.”

The three of us stood there together, cherishing the final moments when I would be just their daughter, unmarried and without a family of my own. Once I left the house with Bones, I would be having my own children, and things would never be the same. They wouldn’t be worse, probably better, but never the same as they were now.

Mama cleared her throat and moved from Father’s embrace. “We’re getting started soon. I’ll see you guys down there.”

Father kept staring at me, like he wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words. He’d never been an emotional man when I was growing up, but ever since Bones came into the picture, he’d become much softer.

“You’ll never lose me, Father.”

His eyes narrowed slightly on my face, touched by my words.

“I’ll always be your daughter…even when you’re pushing eighty and I’m forty.” I repeated the words back to him, trying to make him feel better.

He finally smiled. “Yes…you’ll always be my daughter. The only thing that’s changing is I’m getting a son, a very noble young man. I know I’m not myself right now, but I am happy, tesoro…even if it doesn’t seem that way. A father’s job is to make sure his daughter ends up with a good man… I did my job. It’s something I’ll never have to worry about again.”

“No, you won’t,” I whispered. “How’s he doing?”

“Quiet. He’s been drinking with me and Conway all day. Seems anxious.”

“I’m sure he is.”

“Not that I can blame him…when you’re the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen.”

“Father…” My eyes watered, and I immediately blinked my tears away, not wanting to ruin my makeup.

He came to my side and extended his arm to me so I could take it. “Let me give you away to a man who’s earned you, tesoro.”

My father guided me down the steps and to the grass at the end of the porch. He used his frame to support me the entire way, even though I was barefoot and had no trouble.

Had no trouble walking to the man I was meant to be with.

The sun was setting, and there were white rose petals everywhere.

I lifted my gaze and met Griffin’s. Piercing blue like the ocean, his eyes were glued to me with the same intensity I expected every single day. He made me his before I even reached him, claimed me from dozens of feet away with his enormous presence. He watched me like my father wasn’t right beside me, guiding me to him.

I didn’t even make it halfway before I started to cry.

I’d lost this man once before, and it was the hardest thing I’d ever had to go through. I knew I would never love anyone the way I loved him. Boys came and went, but he was the first man who could handle me. He loved me the way every woman dreamed of being loved. He didn’t care about the women who stared at him everywhere he went, oblivious to them because I was the only thing ever on his mind. He told me he loved me without skipping a beat, laying his feelings in the open without a hint of hesitation. Strong, powerful, and confident, he was exactly what I’d been looking for…my entire life.

That was why I couldn’t stop crying.

Because I loved this man so much.

He wasn’t what I was looking for. When I met him, I despised him. But when I had the chance to kill him, I couldn’t do it. The second he was on top of me, the game was over. I was his long before I told him I loved him.

We’d been through so much together, overcame all the obstacles that seemed insurmountable.

Because he never gave up on me.

He was one hell of a man.

Dressed in a black suit that Conway had tailored for him, he looked so handsome, the shadow of stubble on his chin. Despite the beautiful color of his eyes, his expression was more intense than I’d ever seen it—like he wanted to yank me out of my father’s hands. The wait was unbearable. I could see it in the way he looked at me.

It was the only time I’d ever seen him dress that way—so handsome.

We finally reached him, a lifetime later. My father grabbed my hand and placed it in Griffin’s. “I give you my daughter—because you’ll take care of her.” He squeezed my hand one last time before he left me go.

Bones kept his gaze on me, but he shut his eyes for a long moment, like he was at war with himself. Then he turned back to my father and moved his hand to his shoulder. “Always, Mr. Barsetti.”

My father gave him a slight nod before he stepped away, leaving me to marry the man I loved. He moved to the seat beside my mom, who was crying into a tissue. He wrapped his arm around her, the tears glistening in his eyes.

Bones looked at me again, taking both of my hands and facing me. He didn’t say a single word, but he didn’t need to say anything at all. He could always tell me how he felt without moving his lips. Right now, I was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen, and while he loved my dress, he’d rather see it on the floor of our bedroom.

He directed both of my hands against his chest, where I could feel his strong heartbeat against his black suit. Thump. Thump. Thump. It was slow and steady, like he could have been sleeping. This beat was calm and true, like this moment was bittersweet.

I took a deep breath and did my best to stem my tears, but it seemed useless. I didn’t want my makeup to be ruined, to look ugly on my wedding day because I couldn’t keep my emotions under control. There was so much feeling in that moment, so much pain, love, and joy.

“Baby.” He rubbed his hand across mine as he kept my palm against his chest. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

He didn’t show tears the way I did, his face stoic like any other day. He did a better job of keeping his feelings under control, but his calmness didn’t stop my tears. “It seems like we’ve been waiting a lifetime for this.”

“Yes…”

“As my wife, I give you my heart. It’ll be your lullaby when you sleep. It’ll always move into my throat every morning when I look at you…when I look at you now. When I die, it’ll lie next to you. We’ll be together always, our souls dancing on the wind for eternity…our heartbeats as a faint drum in the distance.”

Bones had never said anything so beautiful. He was a man of few words, but when he did say something, it always blew my mind. He struggled to express himself, but that made his words so much sweeter. He meant every word, every syllable. “Griffin…”

“Baby, I will love you every day for the rest of my life. I will be your husband, and I will be the best damn husband the world has ever seen. When you sleep beside me, you’ll never be afraid of what happens outside our walls. Our children will be safe…and we can keep having as many kids as you want until you cut me off...because I will give you anything you ask for as long as you continue to love me, to continue to be the greatest thing that ever happened to me.”

I wanted to wipe my tears away, but I didn’t pull my hands from his chest.

“You will take my name, but I know you will always be a Barsetti. I’m not the kind of man that shares, but I will share you with them…because they’re my family too. I will provide everything for both of us, take good care of you so you’ll always have what you need. You’ll spend your days painting and raising our kids, never worrying about earning a penny because that’s my job. I will worship you every day, kiss the ground you walk on, and make love to you every night because I want to enjoy you as long as I can until our time runs out…because one lifetime just isn’t enough.”

I didn’t even care that he said that in front of my whole family. It was beautiful and honest…his trademarks. He didn’t care what anyone thought of him. Never had and never would. It was why I loved him so much. “I…I wrote my vows, but I just…” I closed my eyes and willed myself to stop crying. But no matter what I did, the tears wouldn’t stop.

Bones was patient as he waited for me to gather myself. He waited, squeezing my hand against his chest.

“I’m sorry. I love you…nothing else is coming out.”

“That’s okay, baby. I’ll say them for you.” He squeezed my hand. “I know you love me because it goes without saying. When I walk into the room and you look at me…it’s special. You try not to smile, but it’s impossible. As I come closer and closer to you, your body stiffens in different ways. Once my hands are on you, all that tension releases…and you turn into melted butter in my hands. You love me the way a real woman should love a man, fearlessly, wholeheartedly, and with everything you have. You’re a fighter, the kind of woman that stands her ground against a man twice her size, and I know you would give your life for mine in a heartbeat…even though I would never want you to. You love me despite my flaws, saw past my darkness and saw the light. Only a woman like you could handle someone like me…and I know we both believe that we’re meant for each other. You love me for working my ass off to earn your father’s approval, and you will always be loyal to me for that. We both know I earned you…and that’s the kind of man you want…one earns his woman.”

I nodded slightly, agreeing with everything he’d just said. He ripped the words out of my mouth, reading my heart as well as he could read my eyes. “Yes, that’s how I love you.”

When we were done, the priest finished the ceremony. He turned to Bones, who slipped the ring onto my finger. “Do you take this woman—”

“Yes.” His deep voice shut up the priest, his hard eyes glued to mine.

The priest kept going. “And do you take this man—”

“Yes.”

For the first time, Bones showed the softer emotion he rarely let anyone see—even me. Emotion tugged at his eyes, a beautiful softness that showed the vulnerability of a summer flower about to wilt in winter. His hand relaxed against mine, and he tilted his head slightly, my fast response meaning more to him than everything else I said. He couldn’t wait to marry me—but I couldn’t wait to marry him even more.

“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may—”

Bones grabbed my face and kissed me hard, kissing me harder than he ever had in our lives. One hand dug into my hair without caring about keeping it nice. His other hand cupped the back of my neck slightly as he moved deeper into me. Applause and whistles rang out around us, but neither one of us cared. I was officially his wife, and that meant he didn’t give a damn what anyone thought of us.

His arm hugged my waist, and he pulled me hard into his thick body, gathering me in his arms and smothering me with his love and devotion. His lips moved against mine, and he cherished me the way he promised, loving me deeply and passionately.

When he pulled away, he kept his gaze close to mine, ignoring everyone else around us.

That’s when I saw the distant tears in his eyes, the emotion that reflected my own.

We were standing under the olive tree, the place where my parents wed after the horrible scars they suffered. The blood war seemed like an ancient myth, the hate diminished because of the love that washed it all away.

The moment in time would only last an instant, but that spot would always be marked by our love. Centuries would pass, but there would always be an energy here, a sign of the powerful love that ended a war.

Bones scooped me up into his arms, one arm behind my knee while the other was behind my shoulders. He supported me with ease then carried me down the aisle where our friends and family clapped and cheered. His eyes were only on me, as if no one else was there. “You’re one hell of a woman, baby. Thank you for being my woman.”

My arms circled his neck, and I kissed him as he carried me across the grass. “Thank you for being one hell of a man.”