"Good. That's all I want for you." He spun me gently. "Though I have to say, between Filomena and Nonno, this family is giving me gray hair."
"You handle it well."
"It's all an act. Inside I'm screaming."
I laughed. "You're a good don, Carlo. Papa would be proud."
"I hope so." He pulled me closer for the final bars of the song. "I love you, Jules."
"I love you too."
When the song ended, Carlo kissed my forehead and handed me back to Quentin with a solemn nod—the old tradition, the symbolic passing from one protector to another.
A couple of dances later, I stopped to catch my breath, sending Quentin away to snag a drink. Right after he left, Quentin's cousins approached.
"Julia!" Emilio opened his arms. "May I hug my new cousin-in-law, or is that too forward?"
"Hug away," I laughed, and he did—a warm, genuine embrace that felt nothing like the calculated touches I'd grown up with in my world.
"Congratulations again," Gina said, stepping in for her own hug. "You survived the rehearsal dinner dramaandyour grandfather pulling a gun during the cake cutting. That's impressive."
"The boring side of the Vanetti family is very proud of you," Emilio added with a grin. "The hotel-owning, completely-legitimate, never-been-investigated-by-the-FBI cousins are officially claiming you as one of our own."
Gina swatted his arm. "Stop bragging." She turned to me with a warm smile. "We meant what we said last night—we're so happy for Quin. He deserves someone special. Someone who can handle him."
"He does come with a certain level of intensity," I admitted.
"That's the Vanetti blood," Emilio said. "Even those of us who went legit can't quite shake it. Though we channel it into hostile takeovers of competing hotel chains instead of, you know, actual hostility."
"Much more civilized," I agreed.
Gina leaned in conspiratorially. "We were taking bets on whether Quin would ever settle down. I had money on 'confirmed bachelor forever.' You've cost me two hundred dollars."
"Sorry?"
"Don't be. I'm happy to lose." She squeezed my hand. "Welcome to the family. The whole family—even those of us who stayed in New York and pretend we're normal now."
"Is anyone in this family actually normal?" I asked.
Emilio and Gina exchanged glances, then burst out laughing.
"Fair point," Emilio said. "But we're the closest you're going to get. If you and Quin ever want to visit New York and staysomewhere that doesn't involve organized crime connections, our hotel always has a suite available."
"I'll keep that in mind."
"Please do." Gina hugged me again. "And if you ever need advice on handling stubborn Vanetti men, call me. I've been dealing with them my whole life."
"That offer might be worth more than the hotel suite."
"It absolutely is," she confirmed.
Quentin rejoined me moments later, but Stone immediately waved him over with an urgent gesture.
"He looks like he'll have a heart attack if I don't go see what's wrong," Quentin said. "Will you be okay for a minute?" He handed me my drink.
"Of course."
"I'll be right back."
