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Then she appears. Aria descends the stairs, her hand lightly resting on her father’s arm. She’s wearing a simple but elegant ivory dress, holding a bouquet of hand-picked flowers in one hand and a pretty little veil uncovered on her head. Her face is calm, but her eyes are burning with suppressed anger aimed squarely at me.
I picked the ivory dress myself, but I never imagined it would hug her slender frame so beautifully, accentuating the dip in her waistline and the curves of her hips.
When they arrive at the altar, her father places her hand in mine with a firm nod, then steps back.
“Shall we begin?” the priest asks, his solemn voice cutting through the silence.
My head bobs in a nod, my grip on Aria’s hand steady, though she tries to pull it back slightly.
“Marriage is not only a union. It’s an institution, one that must be respected and honored by both parties. That being said, do you, Elio Donatelli, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife till death do you part?”
As if by instinct, both our eyes raise to gaze at each other.
“Yes, I do,” I respond. This may be fake, but I can’t explain how much her coming into my life has changed me. At this point, there are no regrets. We’re both getting what we want from this deal, and I’m glad we’re finally getting it over with.
“Aria Abruzzi, do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband till death do you part?”
She immediately turns her face away from mine, casting her gaze at her father, who’s dabbing away at the corners of his eyes. I’d called him earlier that day to tell him that I planned a surprise wedding for Aria and lied that it was because she was getting stressed about all the preparations. He was more than overjoyed and even said he’d picked the suit for this occasion the day I gave him the invite at the hospital. “Yes, I do,” she calls out uninterestedly, as if she cannot wait any longer for this ceremony to end. Cortez hands me the ring I got for Aria, and I slip it onto her finger.
Hearing the priest say “You may now kiss the bride,” I step closer to Aria, tilting her chin up gently. Our lips meet, soft and brief, but her lips are stiff, unyielding. When we pull back, her eyes meet mine again, filled with unmistakable regret.
“Gentlemen, I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Donatelli!”
Cortez and Aria’s father burst into applause, both of them taking turns to squeeze Aria and me in congratulatory hugs.
Aria pulls her hand from mine as soon as we turn away from Cortez and her father, who are the only people in attendance. As we walk down the aisle together, I lean in slightly and murmur, “See? That wasn’t so bad.”
Her response is a sharp elbow to my ribs, hidden behind her bouquet. I bite back a smirk and straighten up. This marriage is going to be interesting. I can already feel it.
“Move a little closer, give us a smile…and cheers!”
Cortez has his phone in different angles, playing photographer, asking us to tilt our heads, smile more, or look at each other. Aria barely turns her face toward mine. When she does, her jaw is set, her smile fake and tight.
Once I’ve had enough, I turn over to Aria’s father, who has been standing in a corner, secretly taking pictures with his own phone.
“Thank you for coming, Deputy Chief.” My lips are tilted in a small smile.
“You better do my girl right, Donatelli, or you’ll know why I’m deputy chief.”
Our heads fall back as laughter rattles through our bodies.
“Dad.” Aria cuts in, giving me a once over with her eyes before steering her dad away from me and wrapping her arms around his neck.
Karl Abruzzi releases his grip on his daughter, framing her face with his palms while whispering something to only her hearing.
Once they turn back to me, I beckon to one of the men who’d been standing by as security.
“Take Deputy Chief Abruzzi home,” I tell him, clapping a hand on his shoulder. “Make sure he gets there safely.”
The tall, lanky guy nods. “Right away, Sir.”
Aria’s father clasps my hand firmly. “Take care of her,” he says, his voice warm with emotions.
“I promise.” The reply rolls off my tongue just as one of my cars is brought around to pick him up.
As the Deputy Chief is led to the car, I turn to Cortez. “Take Aria to the private apartment. It’s ready for our honeymoon.” Cortez glares at me, but I turn my head away, pretentiously waving at her father, whose car is almost out of sight.
My gaze turns back to Aria, her arms folded, bouquet drooping in one hand. “You’ll like it. It’s private and quiet.”