Epilogue
Ani
In true Grace fashion, she continued to be a class act and invited Raffi and Ani to the premiere of Mafia Princess.
And in true Raffi fashion, he had rented a stretch SUV limo for just the two of them from their hotel in West Hollywood to the Fox Bruin Theater.
Which is where they were now, in a line of cars waiting their turn to pull up to the entrance.
It had been a month and a half since Ani and Raffi had reunited in Marin, and it had been the best month and a half of her life.
She’d been booked solid with weddings, as had ?, and Ani was planning the majority of them.
Everyone wanted a taste of celebrity at the now-iconic winery where Grace Zhang walked down the aisle.
Which meant she and Raffi still got to spend plenty of time together.
He’d met her parents twice, and both times had gone wonderfully.
Her mother had googly eyes for Raffi, and Ani caught her dad slapping him on the back jovially.
She and Raffi had even attended a banquet together and danced all night in front of what felt like the entire Northern California Armenian community.
Nothing said “official” more than that, she joked with him, and he wholeheartedly agreed.
She stared out onto the scene of cameras flashing and no longer felt any fear about them.
The stories about her completely died after the wedding.
It seemed no one was actually that interested in the wedding planner, so no further stories surfaced.
She happily retreated into obscurity—at least from the celebrity point of view.
Ani was no longer obscure when it came to wedding planning.
She smiled at the thought, proud of herself.
Raffi kissed her neck, and Ani closed her eyes to take in the full sensation. She leaned into him, savoring his touch.
Then Raffi reached a hand under the slit of her deep burgundy dress. He dragged his fingers up her thighs like he had several months ago, and he still took her breath away.
“Do we have time?” Raffi asked, his voice gravelly.
Ani gasped as he made contact, but their car moved forward. They were nearly at the front.
“I don’t—I don’t think so,” she managed. “See—” She motioned toward the glass, torn between wanting him and not missing their chance to get out of the car.
His hand slowly retreated, and he reached up and tenderly kissed her cheek instead.
“Probably for the best,” he said. “That hair and makeup need to stay intact.”
“Oh yeah?” she asked. He was grinning at her like he had a secret.
“I do think, though,” Raffi said, sliding down the seat and onto the…floor? “We do have time for this.”
My goodness, Raffi was dutifully committed to oral. She glanced out the window and noted they did probably have a few minutes. And after all, she wouldn’t mess up her hair. He was so thoughtful. Ani braced herself for the parting of her thighs.
But it didn’t come.
Then she saw it. He wasn’t just on the floor. He was down on one knee, reaching into his jacket.
Her heart stopped, because time had already folded in on itself, as this man, this impossible, wonderful man, looked up at her like she was his entire world.
He pulled out a dark blue box and asked, “Ani, since the moment you crashed into my life—literally falling into my arms—you’ve challenged me, pushed me, and made me want to be better, not just for you but for myself, too. There’s no one in the world like you. No one who sees me the way you do.”
He exhaled, then stared straight into her eyes.
“I want to spend the rest of my life trying to be the person you deserve, to love you the way you’ve loved me, and to build a life together that’s as wild and beautiful as you are.
You are my one. My forever one. Will you do me the honor of marrying me? ”
She hadn’t even looked at whatever was inside the box because she was too focused on Raffi’s smoldering eyes staring into hers with so much love.
“Yes, Raffi jan, yes. Yes, yes. I’m yours. Every day from now until forever.”
She threw her arms around him and he kissed her carefully, still thinking about her makeup, although she didn’t give a damn anymore. She’d just been proposed to. She was going to marry Raffi. This was a dream. This was the most beautiful dream.
She pulled away for a moment and looked in the box. Then she threw her head back. “Raffi! I can’t. That’s too big!”
Raffi smirked. “That’s what—”
“Don’t say ‘That’s what she said’!”
They both giggled. He slid the ring onto her finger. A perfect fit. She watched it shimmer in the low lights of the limo. She may have cried a little.
“It’s fine. It’s lab-grown anyway. Half price, and I love a deal.”
She pushed him playfully. “Stop. This is too much. But goddamn, it’s magnificent.”
He held her and stared at her with so much devotion. “Ani Avakian, my fiancée.”
“Raffi Garabedian, mine,” she said.
A moment later, their car pulled up directly to the theater.
“And now we get to take post-proposal photos on the red carpet.”
“You’re really something, Raff.”
He laid his head against hers and whispered, “This is just the beginning. We have our whole lives together.”
With one more kiss, Raffi opened the door to the dazzling beams of the Fox Bruin Theater, to loud joy and kinetic excitement.
Raffi held her hand as she stepped out, and even among the sea of strangers and reporters, she felt entirely safe, powerful, and loved.
Ani marveled at how her life had changed so quickly in less than a year.
Because of him and because of her. Because of them, together.