Chapter 28
Nico’s heart raced as he waited for River’s response. His skin suddenly felt two sizes too small. Was it hot in here? It felt like all the air was being sucked out of the room. He tugged at his tie, loosening it before the damn thing choked him.
Was this…was he having a panic attack? Was this what it felt like to be nervous about something?
Shit, if this is what normal people felt regularly, how the hell did they get anything done? He had no idea.
What he did know was that if River didn’t say something soon, he might implode right where he fucking stood.
She opened her mouth like she was going to speak, then snapped it shut and narrowed her eyes on him. This happened three more times. Eventually, she asked, “What do you mean I’m free?”
Her voice was so calm and so cold that if he wasn’t watching her mouth move, he would’ve assumed someone else was speaking.
“Exactly what I said. With Ricky out of the way, no one is plotting against me. And once the Russians have Jeremy, they won’t have any reason to go after you.
There’s no reason to continue with an arranged marriage.
Or marriage of convenience. Or whatever. ”
She stared at him for so long he actually started fidgeting, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. He was pretty sure he’d never fidgeted in his life.
This fucking sucks.
After a few slow blinks, she asked, “I thought if we didn’t get married, Alexi would think we’d lied to him, and he’d be honor bound to retaliate.”
The snarky emphasis she put on the words honor bound, his words from the night they met, not to mention the little finger quotes she made, grated along his already frayed nerves.
“That was true. But after tonight, it won’t matter.
Alexi believed we were happy at the rehearsal dinner.
All we’d have to do is make up some excuse, call the whole thing off, and he wouldn’t care anymore—especially once he’s personally dealt with Jeremy. ”
“What kind of excuse?”
He cursed under his breath. “Who cares?”
“I care,” she said, the chill in her voice dropping the room temperature by ten degrees.
“We can say anything you want. Maybe, I don’t know, I cheated on you.”
He would swear he saw hellfire in her eyes in that moment. “Who the hell did you supposedly cheat on me with?”
How the hell had the conversation ended up here? He threw his arms wide in frustration. “Fine. We can say you cheated.”
She sucked in an outraged gasp. “I would never!”
“Jesus Christ, River, I’m trying to help you. Why are you making it so difficult?”
Her cheeks flushed red. “You want me to make it easy for you to back out of our wedding?”
That’s when his nerves shifted into anger. Now that was a feeling he knew how to handle. “I’m not trying to back out of shit,” he seethed. “I’m trying to be a good fucking person for once in my life, and you’re not letting me!”
River’s hands went to her hips. “What makes you think I want you to be a good person?”
He’d always wondered how he was going to die.
Would it be in a hail of police gunfire?
Would he get taken out by his own men in some kind of power play?
Now he knew it wasn’t going to be either of those things.
Because River was going to kill him. Not directly.
But she was most assuredly going to cause a blood vessel in his brain to burst.
He reached deep inside himself for patience. Didn’t quite find it. So, he took a deep breath and hissed out, “You have a choice now, for fuck’s sake. That’s all I’m trying to say.”
“So, you’re not saying you don’t want to marry me anymore?”
His eye twitched. That couldn’t be a good thing.
“For the love of all that’s holy, River, of course I want to marry you.
I can’t concentrate when you’re not with me.
I’m too busy wondering where you are and what you’re doing and if you’re safe and if you’re eating and drinking enough water because you get cranky when you’re hungry and thirsty.
But then I can’t concentrate when you are with me because I’m putting all my focus into how to get you naked again.
My whole day is ruined if it doesn’t start and end with you.
I’ve worshipped one thing in my life, and that’s you, River Lang.
If you leave me, you’ll take the sun with you.
I can barely breathe just thinking about you not marrying me. ”
The starch seemed to melt out of her spine, and she rocked back on her heels. “Are you saying that…”
“For fuck’s sake,” he muttered. “I’m saying I love you!”
Her face screwed up in anger again. “Well, I love you, too!”
The world might’ve stopped spinning at that point. Nico’s heart threatened to pound its way out of his chest. Surely, he couldn’t have heard her right. “Do you mean—”
She cut him off with a harsh groan. “Yes, OK? I love you. I love that I showed you the real me, the me I am in my heart, not the person I show to the outside world, and you didn’t run away screaming.
That might not seem like a big deal to you, but to me, it’s huge.
And I love that despite having absolutely zero advantages growing up—except that face, of course—you still became the kind of man who refused to hurt innocent people.
You’re generous and kind and so gorgeous it hurts to look directly at you.
I can’t concentrate when you’re not with me, either.
And honestly, you don’t have to ever focus on how to get me naked.
Just ask, for fuck’s sake; I’ll never say no.
Because I’m starting to think I didn’t even know what love was until I met you.
Is all that clear enough? Or do I need to explain myself again? ”
It seemed clear enough. But then again, it also felt too good to be true. “Are you saying you’re mine, River Lang?”
“Yep. And you’re mine, Nico Fortunado,” she said, her voice cracking on his name.
“You’re goddamned right I am.” He took a step closer but didn’t dare touch her yet. “You want to go ahead with the wedding tomorrow?”
She straightened to her full height. “Just try to stop me.”
He nodded, unable to keep a smile from splitting across his face. “At least we don’t have to wonder anymore if it’s a marriage of convenience or an arranged marriage. It’ll just be a good old-fashioned, boring, traditional marriage.”
Her answering smile was so bright it damn near blinded him. “Since our meet cute involved a kidnapping, I don’t think we can call it boring, or traditional. Happy will work just fine for me.”
Nico couldn’t stand it anymore. He cupped his hand around the back of her neck and yanked her up against him. “How could I ever be anything but happy when I have you,” he murmured before capturing her lips with his own.
He put everything he had into the kiss, falling for her all over again when she responded just as passionately. When he pulled back and rested his forehead against hers, she whispered, “No takebacks. You’re stuck with me now, mister.”
“I’m counting on it, fiorellino. I’m counting on it.”