38. Chapter Thirty-Three George Devereaux
Chapter Thirty-Three: George Devereaux
A s I held my wife in my arms, I looked forward to whisking her away from our wedding. As much fun as today had been, I wanted to be alone with her on our honeymoon—the destination of which was still a surprise to her.
I would be taking her to Montréal where I’d grown up. We would eat poutine, wander through the underground city—which was essentially a cooler name for the subway tunnels—and go to La Grande Roue , the giant Ferris wheel by the water.
She was convinced we were just going to stay in Italy after the wedding was over. However, there were too many Cavallis in Italy for my liking, even after Sergio and Sebastian had both made up with us. I didn’t want to risk running into any of them.
Not when my honeymoon with my new wife ought to be a sacred thing, a hallowed time set apart for just the two of us .
“What are you thinking about, Mister A-Kiss-For-Your-Thoughts?”
“The offer still stands,” I said, holding George more closely to me. She looked radiant in her wedding dress. Though it was short, the skirt flared out when I spun her, and the bodice hugged her body without being too revealing, decorated with crystals that caught the faint candlelight as we danced. “And I’m just thinking about our honeymoon.”
“You still haven’t told me where we’re going. Barcelona?”
“All because you heard that one famous prince of Metropolis went there on his honeymoon—”
“Hey, it was the actress he married that I like. I don’t care about Prince Kostas of Dorapolis ,” she protested with a playful grin.
I knew for a record that she followed both of them closely in the tabloids. “Okay. Next guess.”
“Hong Kong?”
“You’re much colder.”
“Is it somewhere you’ve been before?” She cocked her head to one side, examining me.
“Yes.”
“Have I been there before?” The band switched to a faster song, and I dipped her dramatically, laughing when she nearly lost her balance and fell before I caught her.
“I don’t think so.” Had she been to Montréal? It was known for its fashion, so maybe she would have been there for a modelling gig.
“Is it somewhere that I’ll like?” She cocked her head to one side.
“I hope so.”
“George!” She swatted my arm. “Give me a serious answer.”
“I am being serious.” I pulled my face into the most wacky expression I could muster, eyebrows scrunching up and tongue poking out. “So serious. ”
Georgia burst out laughing. I could listen to that sound for the rest of my life and never be bored. “Is it… Cuba?”
I rearranged my expression into a more sedate one. “No, but now I’m thinking it would be nice if it was. We could go to the beach together, swim, and drink fruity cocktails with little umbrellas in them.”
“You just want to see me in a swimsuit.”
“Guilty. And has anyone ever told you that you’re awful at guessing?”
She rolled her eyes. “Fine. I guess I’ll just let you surprise me.”
Georgia rested her head against my shoulder, and that small gesture of affection nearly undid me. Despite her having just agreed to spend the rest of her life with me, I couldn’t help but cherish every moment with her.
She was the woman I wanted to tell everything to, to spend my whole life with—and somehow, in some way, she was in my arms.
“I feel like I’ve tricked you into falling for me, and at any moment now, the spell will break and you’ll realize what you’re doing here, and that you don’t really want to be with me after all,” I said.
We hadn’t choreographed our first dance, both of us deciding we’d rather spontaneously spin each other around the dance floor. I was grateful for that now, because I would have lost all memory of our choreographed steps at the look in her eyes.
“George,” she said, her tone admonishing. “I love you. And I assure you, you’re awful at lying, so I highly doubt you’d be able to trick me into falling for you. I walked into this with my eyes open, just like you, and I assure you, I love the man you are, and the man you were, and the man you’ll become.”
She let go of my hand and bracketed my face with her palms, dragging my mouth an inch or so down to hers. Her kiss was electrifying and tender all at once. Georgia was everything I’d ever wanted wrapped up in one woman, and I didn’t know how I’d gotten so lucky to find her. But I knew I’d never take her for granted after spending so many years apart.
My hands latching onto her waist, I tugged her even closer to me. Somewhere, in the distant crowd of wedding guests, I heard whooping and hollering and cheers, but I couldn’t bring myself to care about them. I couldn’t bring myself to care about anything but holding my wife in my arms.
***
After our first dance, we remained on the dance floor for a few more dances. But when the song switched from slow ballads to faster, more upbeat tunes, I stepped off the dance floor. Georgia stayed, holding hands with Abigail and spinning around to the electronic music.
I spied Katerina standing off the dance floor, holding a sleepy-looking Mattias on her hip. The sight of them together made my smile broaden and I walked toward them.
“Katerina,” I said. “Thanks for being here.”
Her brows lifted. “It’s my brother’s wedding, did you think I wouldn’t show up?”
“No, but I’m glad you’re here all the same.”
She smiled, then said, “What’s with that sappy look in your eyes?”
“I just love you. And if you hadn’t agreed to marry Alexander, then I don’t think I’d be here right now.”
She shook her head. “Love always makes a way. God always makes a way. I believe that even if Georgia wasn’t Alex’s cousin, you two still would have found a way to be together again. ”
I chuckled. “I hope so, but I’m glad things worked out the way they did and I get to be part of your husband’s family, like how Georgia is now part of ours.”
“Me, too.” Katerina bounced her son on her hip. “You know, I spent a long time being mad at you for leaving.”
“I’d be mad at me, too.”
She had every right to be. In my eyes, she’d always been the perfect Christian, the perfect daughter, and the perfect child in our father’s eyes while I was the rebel. In the past few years, we’d come to know each other as real people, as siblings with flaws and mistakes instead of the caricatures I’d made us out to be in my head.
“I resented you for leaving. But if leaving is what you needed to do to find God—if it’s what brought you here, and united our family in this way, then I’m grateful that it happened. It was all God’s will, after all.” She smiled up at me, her hazel eyes mirroring mine except they were filled with such grace and forgiveness and love that I could barely stand it.
I choked out my words through tears. “I’m glad everything worked out the way it did, too.”
“Thanks be to God,” she said. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I think your nephew wants you to carry him.”
She handed Mattias off to me. I took him, holding him on my hip the way I’d seen Katerina do. “I think you just want to dance with your husband.”
She shot me a grin as Alexander made his way over. “Guilty.”
Georgia’s mom made her way toward me. “What a beautiful wedding.”
“We couldn’t have done it without your help.” It was true; even though we’d had a wedding planner, Auntie May had helped plan a lot of the wedding, along with Ava Steele. She’d hired the caterer and the musicians, as well as found a DJ.
Mattias gave a surprisingly loud yawn for such a small child.
“I think somebody wants a nap,” Auntie May said, reaching for Mattias. “May I? I could use a break from dancing.”
I handed him off to her gratefully. “Of course.”
No sooner had Georgia’s mom left, taking Mattias to a quieter corner of the restaurant, than Georgia appeared by my side.
She grabbed a glass from the refreshment table and filled it with lemon water. I did the same, and I realized this was the first time today that we weren’t surrounded by other people, taking pictures, or talking to family members.
“Looks like we’re finally alone,” I commented as we sipped our waters.
“Oh, the horror! Being alone with my husband.” She reached up to kiss my cheek. I turned so I could kiss her mouth instead.
She rested one hand on my nape, her body pressing up into mine. I wasn’t sure I’d ever get enough of kissing my wife, but I was willing to test that theory. When we separated, I kept one hand on her back, the other holding hers.
“How about we step outside for a moment? I want some fresh air,” I suggested, eyeing the soft moonlight outside and how it illuminated the Fontana della Tartarughe .
“I’d love to.” Georgia’s hand in mine felt like an extension of myself as we slipped past the crowd of guests and darted around the waitstaff, towards the exit.
Outside, the air was slightly cooler than in the stuffy restaurant. Under the moonlight and beneath a canopy of glowing stars, I tipped my head back, awestruck by the beauty of the heavens. Georgia tugged on my hand, pulling me toward the fountain’s edge, next to the railing. A laugh tumbled from my lips at how perfect the moment was. How utterly destined we seemed to be, to come back to this place for all the most important moments of our lives.
We swayed side by side to the music of our heartbeats, her cheek against mine as her chin rested on my shoulder. I listened to her gentle breathing, wrapped in the warmth of her love. Silence hung in the air, but it was comforting, content. The silence of a couple who knew they’d have eternity to talk to one another. When the evening air got too chilly, and I saw Georgia shivering, I took off my suit jacket and draped it around her shoulders. She kissed my cheek in thanks. Then, we walked back into the restaurant.
“Come on,” she whispered. “Let’s go spend the rest of our lives together.”