When Villains Rise (Anti-Heroes in Love 2)

I love you. I’m proud to be your sister.

My burning heart crackled and sparked.

“Anch’io,” I said, hugging her tight.

Same.

“I hope you know that he loves you more than I’ve seen any man but Alexander love another woman,” she said, obviously trying to soothe whatever insecurities I felt about him once claiming to love her. “The Davenport men only love once and they do it forever.”

“I know.” I kissed her smooth cheek and pulled away so she could see my certainty. “I don’t have any doubts.”

She pressed a finger to the corner of her eye to collect a pooling tear then laughed lightly as she dashed it away. “Okay, enough of this. He’s waiting for you.”

A little shiver rattled my shoulders, sweet anticipation on my tongue.

Cosima offered me her arm and I realized she would escort me down the aisle to Dante. It was fitting that my sister would do so when she’d sacrificed and support me through so much. Fleetingly I wished Mama was there, but then I decided she would understand better than anyone the impulsiveness of a capo.

We left the little room and moved through the archways into the main chamber before turning left to walk down the aisle.

And there he was.

My capo.

Resplendent in a gorgeous black suit and tie, the stark color bringing the vividness of his deeply bronzed skin into relief.

But all I really noticed was the look on his face as he took me in.

Awe and wonder.

He seemed struck by it as if by lightning, his gaze electric on me as I moved toward him, his fingers twitching at his sides as if he couldn’t bear a second longer without touching me. Without being able to make certain I was real and not some mirage cast down from Heaven.

I felt my soul crack open, light pouring out through the smile that made my cheeks hurt.

He blinked as if looking at the sun.

When we reached the altar, I finally noticed that a small, but brown Priest stood behind Dante with Alexander and Tore flanking him. They both smiled at me, even Alexander’s face soft with contentment.

Impatient, Dante stepped forward to take my hand and pull me from Cosima.

She laughed. “I guess you don’t need my blessing to hand her over.”

“I don’t need anyone’s blessing, but her own,” he agreed easily, his eyes pinned to mine even as he spoke to her.

I stepped closer, capitulating to the magnetic force between us. There was something I wanted to say, but I was mesmerized by the depth of love and wonder in those night black eyes.

“Dimmi si,” he murmured as he pressed his forehead to mine and cupped my hips in his big hands. “Say yes.”

My heart beat too hard and too slow in my chest, a heavy, aching knock at my ribcage. I realized he had been planning this for a while, since the first time he asked me to trust him, to say yes to him.

“Si. Yes. Sempre.”

Yes, forever.

His joy cracked through his expression, his ruddy lips widening until those sharp teeth shone and his eyes sparkled like a clear night sky with twinkling stars.

“Farei qualsiai cosa per te,” he told me in that beautiful British, Italian accent, his hands finding my face, cupping it tight, tipping it up like a diamond to catch the light. “I would do anything for you, Elena. Men have said that to women before, but they couldn’t know what it means, not really. I will kill for and die for you, but I will also shop for you because I like you in the clothes I’ve bought and I’ll cook for you because I love to watch you rediscover the joy of indulgence. I will make love to you when your heart is aching and lonely, echoing with the past, and I will fuck you when you can’t stand to be empty of me for one second longer. I am capo dei capi of the New York Camorra, but that is not the most important title I have anymore. In fact, it means next to nothing compared to the gift you are about to give me. The gift of being your husband and a lifetime of loving you fiercely, fucking you senselessly, and watching you awe me with your wit and beauty and drive every single day.”

His sigh feathered over my mouth, his lips following it to kiss me hard then soft. The embrace fluctuated like a flickering flame, bright and dark, tender and ruthless as if he wanted to show me the two sides of his love for me, the wholeness of our unity.

When he broke apart, he said quietly, “Resta con me per sempre. Be my donna and my wife. My forever love.”

Stay with me forever.

“Yes,” I rasped through my heart beating in my throat, threatening to choke me with love and overwhelming gratitude for this man and this moment. I reached up to clutch his neck, my thumb finding his pulse as he so often did with me. “Before you, I was empty and cold, a locked room in the deepest dungeon. Now, I can breathe again, feel again, burn again. You proved to me that I am worthy of love and I want to spend the rest of my life proving to you that you’re the best man I’ll ever know and you made the right decision in trusting me with your endless heart.”