Chapter 30
Sofia
For the first two weeks after my brush with death, I could barely move from the bruises decorating my ribs.
Miles was plagued with guilt, not just because he’d been the one to batter my chest as he tried to restart my heart, but because he hadn’t gotten to me before I was shoved off the end of the jetty.
It didn’t matter how many times I told him that if it weren’t for the bruises, I’d be dead. Nor did it matter how often I reminded him that had he tried to break free of the gun pressed to his head, he would have been killed instantly, and then without a doubt, I would have died too.
It simply didn’t matter. The guilt ate him alive.
Our physical wounds healed over time, the emotional ones took longer, and we both knew we’d be left with invisible scars, reminding us of what had happened.
Night after night passed, and as nightmares haunted our sleep, we would lie awake talking until the sun came up, bearing our souls to each other. Slowly, we started healing together. Gradually, his guilt began to ebb.
It took time to build up my confidence to leave the house out of fear that I would be kidnapped again, especially after Miles told me all about the threat from the Herrera cartel.
He had to tell me; I woke up screaming one night, and recalled him telling Hugo that my father’s debt was not mine to pay.
But my fears were somewhat allayed when Miles reassured me that the cartel had agreed not to take any action against me or Papa while a deal was discussed between them and the Wolfes. A deal that was being negotiated by none other than Rafe.
While I still had the lingering fear that the cartel would suddenly strike, I had faith in Miles to keep me safe, and I had faith in my brother to find a way to clear up Papa’s mess.
Besides, if I gave in to the fear that wanted to consume me, I’d never have left the house, and I refused to let anyone take my life from me now that I was finally beginning to live it.
The feud between my papa and the cartel explained Rafe’s absence since the night of the incident. He’d been spending an awful lot of time in New York, and while he maintained he was there to deal with the cartel, I suspected there was another reason my brother was reluctant to leave the city.
And it wasn’t because of Vanessa King, despite their engagement still standing after I’d broken her nose.
As for Papa, I couldn’t say I was surprised to learn that he had taken little steps to negate the threat toward me. He’d visited me once, a few days after Miles had brought me back to life, and he was more disappointed at learning that I wasn’t pregnant than he was at me nearly dying.
Miles had thrown him out of the house and told him he wasn’t welcome in my life anymore. The two had engaged in a silent standoff before Papa left, muttering that this wasn’t over. Miles’ response had been nothing but a smirk.
I didn’t know it until the moment Papa drove away, but an invisible cloak of dread had been hanging over me since the day I’d returned from Italy.
Once his car disappeared out of the drive, the cloak lifted.
I collapsed to my knees in the foyer of our home and sobbed my heart out in Miles’ arms, relief and gratitude sweeping through me that I no longer had to deal with Papa alone.
When my tears dried up, Miles asked me a question that took my breath away, and my answer was one that led me to sitting in front of my mirror almost six weeks after drowning, and applying the finishing touches to my makeup.
I stared back at my reflection, my blue eyes sparkling under the warm sun beaming in through the enormous glass windows of the room Miles and I now shared. It was a stark difference from the last time I’d looked in the mirror while wearing a wedding dress.
The last time, my gaze had been filled with trepidation and uncertainty at my future. Now, they held nothing but excitement for my life with Miles.
A soft knock at the door pulled me away from my reverie. Standing, I called for whoever it was to come in. Air whooshed out of my lungs when Rafe stepped inside, dressed in a smart tux, and his dark hair impeccably styled.
“Rafe! You came!” I squealed, jumping into his arms, careful not to crease my silk dress.
He pulled me against his chest. “Of course I came. I wouldn’t miss your wedding day.”
I beamed at him. While Miles and I were already married, we both agreed that we would treat the renewal of our vows as if it were our official wedding day. The first time around didn’t count. Neither of us had a choice then. This time, we did.
So when Miles proposed after I’d finished crying in his arms, finally free to make my own decisions, the answer was easy.
We’d spent the last few weeks pulling everything together, the two of us deciding where we would get married, who would be there, and every other little detail that had been decided for us the first time.
“You look absolutely stunning, Sofe,” Rafe grinned, staring down at me with love in his eyes.
But there was a hint of sadness that had me reaching out to caress his freshly shaved cheek. “Is everything okay?”
He swallowed, and the brief hesitation before he answered told me his answer was a lie. “Never better.”
“I hate it when you lie to me.”
He sighed and gently removed my hand from his cheek, clutching it in his. “I hate not being able to tell you everything, but I will, Sofe. I just need time. Can you give me that?”
I squeezed his hand. “Take all the time you need. You know I’m always here for you, though, right?”
He nodded. “I know. Actually, there was something I wanted to ask.”
“Okay?”
His lips pulled from a sad smile into an affectionate one. “Can I give you away?”
My heart swelled with the love I held for my brother. “I’d love nothing more.”
At a second knock on the door, we both twisted to see who it was. Riley, dressed in her mint-green bridesmaid dress, appeared in the doorway, her features lighting up as she took in my dress.
“Wow, Sofia,” she whistled. “That dress is so much hotter than the other one. Miles is totally going to want to bang you in that.”
A slight tint of red colored my cheeks. She was right, the silver dress was way sexier than the first one I’d worn.
The silk material of this one clung to my curves like a second skin, and it was completely backless, meaning I’d had to forgo a bra, the soft silk pressing against my nipples every time I moved.
“Christ,” Rafe said, pinching the bridge of his nose. “That’s my sister you’re talking about.”
“Oh, shush,” Riley grinned. “You know as well as I do that the newlyweds won’t be able to keep their hands off each other.”
“Yeah, but I don’t need the mental image.”
At his anguished groan, Riley and I giggled. When Angel appeared at the door, also in her matching bridesmaid dress, happiness rolled through me. For most of my life, I’d been nothing but lonely, invisible to most. But now, I had everything I had always wanted.
I was no longer a ghost.
“Are you ready?” Riley said, handing me a small bouquet she’d been holding, and clasping Angel’s hand.
“More than ready.”
The four of us made our way through the house and up to the roof terrace. Exactly one week after I'd nearly drowned, Miles had the swimming pool filled in after I’d had a nightmare about drowning in the pool.
Instead, he’d hired a team of gardeners to transform the area into a rooftop garden.
The space was now filled with a variety of beautiful flowers in all sorts of colors, sizes, and scents.
There was even a bench with a little plaque in memory of my mom, where I often sat and stared at the city of Hollows Bay until the stars at night came out.
It was the perfect place for us to renew our vows.
Reaching the door that would lead out onto the terrace, Riley gave me a kiss on the cheek before stepping out with Angel by her side. The second they did, piano music filled the air, the notes of Canon in D by Beethoven ringing out; one of my favorite piano pieces.
Offering me his arm, I looped my arm through Rafe’s, my body vibrating with excitement. He pushed the door open and led me through, my gaze clashing with the man who had changed my life.
My mouth dried, something that happened often, especially now Miles’ hair was back to the length it was the first night I laid eyes on him.
It hung neatly just above his shoulders, and he’d tucked it behind his ears.
My mind fluttered to the night before when he made me come three times using just his tongue, and I’d gripped the silky-soft strands.
He was dressed in a matching tux to what Rafe and Kai, his best man, were wearing, the jacket tight against his muscular frame. He tracked me as I slowly made my way down the makeshift aisle to where he waited.
The few guests disappeared from around me; there was only one person I was focused on, and from the way his eyes tracked me, I had the feeling it was taking all his strength to hold himself back from marching to me and dragging me back to the bedroom.
Or maybe fucking me right on the spot in front of all the guests.
We hadn’t fulfilled my fantasy of visiting Exotique yet, something I was determined to change.
And soon.
I barely made it to the end of the aisle before Miles grabbed my hand, ripped me out of Rafe’s hold, and pulled me against his solid chest. “Fuck, Jailbait. You’re killing me here,” he hissed against my lips, his cock pressing against my core. “You look fucking beautiful.”
An enormous smile took over my face as warmth cascaded through me. “You scrub up nicely too, Mr. Wolfe.” I placed my hands on his chest and pressed my lips against his, forgetting we had an audience, until a throat clearing sounded.
“If you don’t mind, not all of us want to see the porn show, especially Angel,” Kai scolded playfully.
I bit my lip. While I wanted nothing more than for Miles to fuck me in front of an audience, I didn’t want it to be an audience of people including a thirteen-year-old and my brother.
Reluctantly, we released each other and turned to the celebrant, still clasping the other’s hand, neither one of us prepared to let the other go.
The celebrant began by opening the ceremony and welcoming our guests. He could have been speaking in a foreign language for all I knew. I had lost myself in Miles’ gaze, flashes of memories leading us to this point racing through my head.
Life had a funny way of turning out the right way.
The night in Exotique when I first saw Miles, there was something about him that sucked me in.
I didn’t want him just for one night; I wanted him for so much more.
A feeling he echoed. Despite the lies told and the heartache we’d both endured, we were finally getting what we wanted.
Each other.
“Mr. Wolfe, when you’re ready, please read your vows,” the celebrant said.
Miles didn’t tear his gaze away from me as he pulled me closer and gripped my hips, his fingers digging into my skin through the silk of my dress.
“Jailbait. The last time I stood in front of you like this, I took you to be my lawful wife, for richer, for poorer, and in sickness and in health. What I should have vowed is that I would respect you forever, cherish you until my last breath, and that I would love you for eternity.”
Tears of joy welled in my eyes as Miles spoke so quietly that only I could hear his words. He was speaking solely to me as if right then, I was the only person on the entire planet.
“So I stand here before you today to offer you those vows. To tell you that you are my world, and that for as long as you want me, I will be by your side, through the highs and the lows as your protector, your greatest advocate, your best friend, and your husband. I love you, Sofia Wolfe, and from this day, I vow to be the man you deserve. The man who sees you for who you are.”
A single tear slipped free, which Miles brushed away with his thumb before cupping my cheek and lowering his mouth to mine. Our mouths parted together, and our tongues briefly danced before he pulled away, but rested his forehead against mine.
For several long seconds, we stayed like that, just staring deep into each other’s eyes, right down to our souls, the world around us forgotten about once more.
“Do I get to hear your vows?” Miles said, pulling back to grin down at me.
In my periphery, Rafe stood and rummaged in his pocket for the piece of paper I’d given him before we left the bedroom, but I gave him a quick shake of my head, telling him I didn’t need them. What I wanted to say came straight from my heart.
I sucked in a nervous breath. “Miles. The first time we met was in unconventional circumstances,” I started, earning a grin from him.
Kai and Riley might have known the truth about how we met, but I certainly didn’t want Rafe to ever find out.
“But from the minute I laid eyes on you, you were the only one I wanted. You were the man I wanted then, the man I want now, and the man I’ll want for the rest of my life. ”
I paused as he swallowed, his eyes blazing with the same possessiveness they had the first time I told him he was the one I wanted, and not Theo.
“When we previously said, ‘I do,’ I didn’t know then that you would be making me the luckiest woman alive. But I am. I am the luckiest woman there is because I get to love you. I get to spend the rest of my life loving the man who loves me. The man who makes sure I’m not invisible anymore.”
Another tear slid down my cheek, and ignoring the waterfall of tears that were desperate to fall from my eyes, I pushed on.
“So in front of our friends and family, I make this vow to you. I promise that when I die, and I’m asked what was the greatest thing I did with my life, I’ll say it was loving you.
Because I do. I love you with every beat of my heart, Miles Wolfe. ”
This time when we kissed, I wrapped my arms around the back of his neck, and he laced his hands around my waist, the two of us holding each other tight enough that even a pack of wild horses couldn’t tear us apart.
Somewhere nearby, as we continued to kiss, the celebrant started speaking again. “It is my honor to once again announce Sofia and Miles Wolfe as married. May the renewal of your vows strengthen your love and reaffirm your commitment to each other.”
A round of applause surrounded us as the celebrant lowered his voice. “I would say that I invite you to share a kiss to seal the renewal of your vows, but I fear I’m too late.”
Miles laughed against my lips, sliding his hands down to my ass and squeezing it. “Does this mean we get to consummate our marriage again?”
I grinned back at him. “Definitely.”
The End.