Epilogue

Shelby

I suck in a gulp of warm salty beach air as Jane, our helper on the private island estate, tightens the lacing on the back of my white A-line dress. I smile when she puts the finishing touches on my lipstick, and then slip my soles into the cobalt-blue heels I've chosen to wear today. Not an easy feat on the beach, but I love them. I always wanted to have my princess moment, and I’m finally getting it. Much sooner than I ever expected, but getting it still. In a big way.

I take a moment to pause when Jane packages up her small bag of makeup at the small makeshift vanity in the beach villa. My lips turn up as I look out over the boardwalk and down to the sparkling azure waves.

Set up next to the shoreline is a large white canopy, flowing with every shade of white flower known to man, along with vibrant blue-tipped roses in bundles that add a stunning pop of color to an already beautiful scene. Shane's brothers linger on the raised boardwalk platform built just for this occasion. Baby pink bows decorate four posts on each side of the canopy and line the boardwalk–my makeshift aisle–and in the middle stands the man hired to marry us.

It's a wedding plucked right from a fairytale, and I've been pinching myself in every moment leading up to this one. From the roses to the lace A-line gown with the sweetheart neckline and delicate beadwork that Shane commissioned a tailor to make in just three short weeks. My prince.

Shane.

Butterflies turn in my stomach as I press my hands to my belly and think that I'll need to get out of this dress soon. The waist pinches and the shoes rub. I'm also praying that my light wash of mascara won't run with the tears of happiness that will soon be blurring my vision.

"Ready, dear?" Jane hums. She's been like a second mother to me from the moment we stepped on the private island that Shane bought for us a little over a month ago. Within twenty-four hours of my attack, we were on a plane headed here, Isla del Cay, our new home.

"I'm ready." I nod and swallow the anxious lump in my throat before turning and flashing her a smile. “I've been counting down the days to this. I'm more than ready."

Jane slips open the wide French doors and gives a small wave down to the beach before soft piano music starts. Tears instantly burn my eyes as I recognize the familiar wedding march.

Just another of Shane's touches. He’s spared no details and leaped right into wedding planning mode after he proposed to me with a ring more expensive than any house I’ve ever lived in. I said yes right here on the beach our first night on the island, and fell into his arms as happy tears surged down my cheeks and the waves kissed our ankles in the moonlight.

I knew long before then that he was the one that I was meant to walk this Earth with. An energetic swell consumes me the second he enters a room, a combustible reaction in the atoms that launch themselves between us. There is no turning from him, I’m as helpless against his force as I am to anything, and I love him and his brothers with a fierce faith and loyalty.

After all, our connection is bound in blood.

Gio and Rafe have chosen to split their time between here and Chicago, but Shane and I will never return, and I attended the last of my classes virtually, and even attended my graduation ceremony at the community college from our little island off of Costa Rica.

When we reach the end of the boardwalk, with tears streaming in my eyes, Jane places a quick kiss on the apple of my cheek and I step onto the aisle that will lead me down to the water's edge. The piano plays in time to the chords as I lock eyes with my forever.

He is stunning. His dark hair is pushed back smartly, a crisp black tux from head to toe, and one sexy flash of turquoise blue in his pocket. I want to run to him, kiss him like no one is watching, and thank him for loving me. For saving me. My eyes cast over to my uncles, the two men at his side. They look handsome as ever, and I think how lucky I am to have them in my life. I smile brightly, seeing them standing there, representing all of the love my life can hold on this special day.

Not a single other person on the planet matters to me more than the three men right here with me today.

Tears climb up my throat and threaten to overflow when I'm within a final few steps and my eyes lock with Shane's. My future husband reaches his arm out then, and with that simple touch, I connect myself to him for an eternity.

"Finally," Shane whispers when I'm close enough to hear, his lips placing a delicate kiss on my neck as my happiness consumes me, my smile so big it might crack my cheeks, my heart so full I can't think of anything else but our future together.

There is so much more to come for us, and life with Shane is about to get bigger, and so much better.

* * *

Shane

With the ceremony and photography session over and my brothers filtering back to the house to celebrate with wine and hors d'oeuvres, I snag my baby girl by the hand and walk her to the shoreline. "Okay, baby?" I need a moment with her. There may be one million more in my future, but I need this one.

I'm so much more than okay," she hums. "I didn't think I could be this happy. Thank you for giving me such a magical day." Her eyes finally turn and the water hovering at her eyelids nearly undoes me on the spot. I have so much love for this woman, it can't be expressed with words.

"You are so beautiful, my love. You're as beautiful and pure as the crystal waves of the ocean. My life was meaningless before you."

My wife. How did I ever get so lucky? I thought I'd have to lock her in a tower to keep her safe, but here is where we were always meant to be. "You changed everything. You're the wild card I didn't see coming. My life is so much fuller with you in it, and if another man ever tries to come between us his blood will be on my hands." I think back on the man whose life I ended the day before we arrived here, the day she was attacked near the market and defended herself so ruthlessly. Just like I taught her to do. "Thank you for putting up with me, and thank you for being mine."

"Mmm..." She hums against my lips as my palms trail down to her waist, imagining the vibrant tiny heartbeat I know lives there.

"So when are we going to tell them?" I ask, referring to Gio and Rafe back in the house.

"An announcement during the toast would be fun," she answers as light reflects off of her dark blonde curls. She looks so damn happy today. Positively radiant.

Tags: Aria Cole Erotic
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