The priest turns to me and smiles.
“Please recite your vows now.”
I take a deep breath to steady my breathing and turn to Julius with a heart heavy with devotion. It hasn’t escaped me that this vow is completely different from the one I have practiced over the past few years but somehow is the right one.
I know that deep inside my heart, and so I smile with happiness as I whisper, “I already see you as my rock, my strength and my future. With you, I am safe, happy and filled with excitement for the years we will share. Circumstances brought us together, and fate will keep us together because the moment I met you, Julius, everything clicked into place. I’ve been lost my entire life until you found me. You are the one my life has been mapped with, and I truly believe that. In return for your kind promises, I pledge my loyalty, my truth and my future. I will be honored to be your wife. It’s not a decision I took lightly, and I will prove to you that your faith in me was written in the stars.”
I catch a breath and then stare at him straight in the eyesand whisper, “I have never looked at anyone the way I look at you and I doubt I ever will because my world stops at you Julius, and I hope it always will.”
The way his eyes burn tells me he knows what I am referring to. The gardener was an idea—a mere dream—but Julius is my reality. He is one million times more important to me already than the gardener ever was, and there is no comparison. He will always be my savior and I will never forget that.
The priest adds, “Rings and weddings have shared a connection since time immemorial—they are symbolic of commitment and have a deep meaning with regard to how valuable love and attachment are and how rare it is for two people to find it in life and formalize it with the bond of marriage.”
He turns to Julius.
“Julius Ravera, place your ring on Rose’s finger and repeat after me. I give you this ring as a symbol of my decision to make you my wife, partner, and closest friend until the rest of my days. ”
Julius nods, and my breath hitches as he opens a velvet box and pulls out a simple gold wedding band studded with beautiful diamonds. I can’t look away as its meaning is clear. Diamonds brought us together and will tie us together for all eternity, and as he takes my hand, I stare into his eyes with so much emotion, it’s overwhelming.
His tone is husky as he whispers, “I give you this ring as a symbol of my decision to make you my wife, partner, and closest friend until the rest of my days.”
As the ring slides onto my finger, I gulp as the emotion of the situation grabs hold of me, and the priest interrupts the moment by turning to me and saying, “Rose, place your ring on Julius’s finger and repeat after me. I give you thisring as a symbol of my decision to make you my husband, partner, and closest friend until the rest of my days.”
I hesitate because I haven’t prepared for this, and I’m surprised when Fiona taps me on the shoulder and hands me a similar velvet box. As I open it, I notice a thick gold band, and my heart jerks as I place it on his heavily tattooed finger, to add to the others on his other fingers.
“I give you this ring as a symbol of my decision to make you my husband, partner, and closest friend for the rest of my days.”
The priest takes our hands before I can process the moment and says in a loud voice, “The vows you’ve taken and the rings you’ve now exchanged have enhanced the love you already share in your hearts and by the power vested in me by God, I pronounce you married! You may now share a kiss!”
It’s as if the priest and Fiona disappear into thin air as I take a step toward my husband as he does the same. He reaches for me and pulls me close, and as his hands cup my face, he kisses me with strength, purpose and, dare I say it, devotion. His strong lips close against mine, and his tongue entangles with mine in a way that leaves me under no illusion.
He meant every word he said, and this is a promise of what happens next. I now belong to him in body, mind and soul, and there is no backing out now. I am his, and in my heart I knew that from the moment he gazed at me through those dark demonic eyes and flashed the wicked grin of a devil.
My heart pounds and my knees tremble as the full enormity of my situation hits home. I have gifted my soul to the devil, and there is no way home from hell.
29
JULIUS
It is done. Mission accomplished because before we leave this room today, Rose will be my wife and my lover and if Lady Luck is smiling on us, she will be pregnant with my child by the time we reach Washington. I have fulfilled my father’s orders, and I’m not complaining. Perhaps I would never have married Rose, but I would most definitely have wanted to fuck her.
She is too adorable, innocent and sexy, and she doesn’t even know that. Now she is mine to play with for eternity, and I’m good with that.
I kiss her like a man controlling every inch of her. Demonstrating how it will be from now on. I will dive into her soul and enjoy the experience, but one thing hasn’t changed; my need to protect her remains. Only one person in this world can ruin this woman, and that is me.
However, I kind of want the opposite of that. I have an overwhelming need to protect her innocence. To keep the light dancing in her eyes and the expression of devotion on her face. Nobody has ever looked at me the way she looks at me, and it’s addictive. She makes me the king of the world,and she is now my queen, and I never want that feeling to change.
So, I kiss Rose as if she is the air I need to survive in this toxic world I inhabit. She is good, I am evil, and we will work it out as we go along.
I pull away and stare at her with triumph and she smiles sweetly, her eyes heavy with emotion.
The priest steps forward and says discreetly, “Congratulations, sir, madam. May you live a long and happy life together.”
Fiona adds her congratulations, and I smile, handing them both an envelope as I nod toward the door. The priest hands me the marriage certificate and as he closes the door, I make certain to lock it after them.
When I turn to Rose, my breath hitches because she is a vision of angelic goodness standing before me. Slightly nervous, hesitant and yet desperately seeking something she is unaware of. Sheishowever aware of what comes next, and I am happy to oblige because the moment has come where I finally make this woman my wife in every aspect of the word.
I hold out my hand. “Come.”
