Victor - Her Ruthless Husband (Ruthless Triad 3)

After we stop screaming like total fangirls, he tells us, “Wait, wait! I read that wrong. I meant Justin Victor. Put your hands together for Justin Victor.”

Our anticipatory screams turn into laughter when the opening notes of “Sorry” sound over a speaker system I wasn’t even aware the house had. Then Victor comes into the living room dancing with Phantom.

“Okay, Victor’s pretending to be Justin Bieber, and, like, lip-syncing,” I narrate for Amber, even though I can barely get the words out for laughing. “Victor’s wearing a baggy white sleeveless shirt with white skinny jeans—that’s the look The Bieb’s wore for the outside stage performance for The Ellen DeGeneres Show—I might have watched it a few thousand times since he didn’t actually feature in the official video for the song.”

I can tell I’m losing Amber, so I push on with, “Anyway, he’s even got the same headset mic as he lipsyncs the song. And Phantom’s dressed like one of the back-up dancers in a flannel and baggy shirt. So’s your husband. And now Luca’s dancing too. Oh my God, they’re actually doing a whole routine behind Victor. It’s so great!”

I have to break off to woot and scream like I’m at an actual Justin Bieber performance at that point. But then I come back to Amber to add, “Although, your husband’s not a great dancer. But Phantom is shockingly nailing all the moves. His fiancée looks super proud of him. Maybe they are the real deal.”

After explaining all of that, I go back to clapping and rooting them on for three more minutes of the performance. My lungs are pretty compromised by all the baby I'm carrying inside of me. But no one, and I mean no one, cheers louder when they're done.

After the song is over, Phantom picks up the mic Luca set down to do his terrible job of backup dancing.

“Okay, first of all, if anybody recorded that, I will straight up murder you if it ends up on the internet.”

Everyone laughs, but Phantom hits us with a dead-serious look that tells me he really might not be joking. “Second of all, I don't think it's any of your business. But Victor wants me to translate this next part.”

With only that warning, Victor suddenly drops to one knee in front of me.

My heart, still so pumped from all the cheering, screeches to a dead stop. What is happening?

As if to answer my question, Victor signs while Phantom says behind him, “Dawn, I know what we have is new and fragile. But I want it—no, I need it to last for more than a few weeks. I know it's hard to trust the new me. It's hard to believe I’ve changed and will present myself to the police before I ever hurt you again. That's why I want to prove it to you. If you let me, I'll spend the rest of my life proving to you that I’ve changed. I'll love you forever. I’ll always let you make your own choices. And I’ll protect you, especially from assholes like me.”

He smiles at his self-deprecating declaration but then sobers to say, “I can't change the past. But I hope we can make our future together. Dawn, I choose you. I will always choose you. Please, choose me too.”

With that huge request, he brings out a wedding ring. It's the same onyx and steel band I flushed down the toilet at the Ferraros. But now it sports a giant black diamond.

I look at it. Then back up to Victor.

I’ve been so confused. So conflicted, ever since Victor and I met.

But in that moment, our relationship flashes before my eyes. Our laughter. Our fights. Our anger. Our love. Every single moment. Both good and bad.

And when the tally’s all done, the emotional math I struggled so hard with before suddenly seems crystal clear.

The good has been so good, it makes the bad disappear.

I want to create more of those good moments. With him. I want to adult. With him. I don’t just want to make a mosaic piece of art out of our shattered relationship. I want to make a mosaic rest of my life. With him.

Yes.

The word presents in three different ways. I shout it. I sign it. And I nod it. All so happily.

“Yes?” Victor repeats like he’s scared he translated the ASL wrong.

“Yes!” I shout, sign, and nod again.

And I guess Victor believes me this time. He jumps back up to his feet, and though there’s a baby between us, he tilts me backward at just the right angle to receive his passionate kiss.

I nearly swoon in his arms. And when he sets me upright, I find everybody cheering and clapping all around us.

Well, almost everybody.

“You got to be kidding me!” a voice yells out over all the applause.