Page 164 of Auctioned to the Mafia Don
“You are required.”
Erin squeals so loudly that Alex winces.
Heath’s eyes lift back to mine.
“Required?” he asks.
“Yes,” I tuck a loose strand of hair behind Erin’s ear. “Because family is not the people who get invited after everything is planned. Family is who you plan around, and who stays part of the plan when everything changes.”
For a second, neither of them speaks.
Then Erin throws her arms around my neck.
Heath joins us a moment later, more carefully, his shoulder pressing against mine.
Over their heads, I look at Stefano.
His face has gone still in that way I know now means he is feeling too much to trust his voice.
For once, I understand exactly what he means. We aren’t saying goodbye. We are building something that can survive it. I am still afraid, but I am no longer only afraid. I can want this and grieve it at the same time.
Epilogue
Maya
The morning of my wedding begins with Erin standing on my bed in a robe three sizes too big, holding up two pairs of shoes as if someone has appointed her to public office.
“These,” she says, lifting the white heels. The silver flats droop from her other hand.
“Not these.”
I sit in front of the mirror while Dolores pins the last piece of my hair into place. “Why not those?”
“Because they are boring.”
“They are comfortable.”
“That is what boring people say when they do not want to admit they have bad taste.”
Dolores makes a sound behind me, equal parts laughter and prayer for patience.
Across the room, Heath sits in the seat beside the window, already dressed in the black suit Stefano had made for him. He keeps fixing his tie when he thinks no one is looking.
“You are both going to make her late,” he says.
Erin turns on him. “You took twenty minutes to choose a pocket square.”
“I chose the black one.”
“You picked up every single one first.”
“That was checking them.”
“That was panicking.”
His mouth tightens.
Then, quietly, he says, “It is a big day.”
