"Stefan—"
"Let me finish." I held his gaze. "Marrying you means choosing my family for the first time. Deciding who I belong to. Making it official that I'm yours by choice, not by blood or obligation or expectation. It means walking away from the Romanos permanently. Probably legally changing my name. Publicly declaring I'm a DeLuca instead of a Romano."
I paused. Made sure he understood the weight of what I was saying.
"It means burning every remaining bridge with my old life. My mother. My brothers. Giuseppe. Anyone who shares myblood. Because I can't be both. I can't be Stefan Romano and Stefan DeLuca. I have to choose." I swallowed hard. "And I'm choosing you. Choosing to be a DeLuca."
Matteo's eyes were wet. "Are you sure? Once you change your name, once you legally marry into this, there's no going back. The Romanos will never accept you again. Giuseppe will consider it the ultimate betrayal. Your mother—"
"Made her choice when she stood by while Giuseppe treated me like property. My brothers made their choice when they never stood up for me. Giuseppe made his choice when he sent me here expecting me to fail." My voice was firm. "Now I'm making mine. I choose you. I choose the Vitales. I choose to be Stefan DeLuca."
"What does that mean to you?" Matteo asked quietly. "Being a DeLuca?"
I thought about it. About what family meant when you actually got to choose it.
"It means belonging somewhere by choice instead of by accident of birth. It means being valued for who I am instead of what I look like. It means having people who actually see me instead of just the role they assigned me." I held his gaze. "It means having a family that chose me back. That wanted me. That fought for me when things got hard instead of throwing me away."
"We do want you. All of us. Not just me."
"I know. I can feel it. The way Sandro trusts me with the books. The way Elio grudgingly respects my work. The way Luca treats me like an actual person instead of an obligation." I smiled slightly. "The way Emilio looks at me sometimes like he sees a kindred spirit—someone else who chose a Vitale over everything they'd known."
"Then yes." Matteo pulled me closer. "Yes, be a DeLuca. Take my name. Be part of this family officially. Legally. In every way that matters."
"You're sure you want that? Want me taking your name? Want everyone to know I chose you over my blood family? Want the complications that come with that?"
"I want exactly that." His voice was fierce. Certain. "I want you to be a DeLuca. Want you to have a family you chose instead of one you were born into. Want to give you that choice officially. Legally. In every way that matters."
"Then yes. I'll marry you."
We held each other while it sank in.
We were getting married. Building a life together. Choosing each other permanently.
"When?" Matteo asked. "When do you want to get married?"
"Soon. I don't want to wait." I kissed him. "I've spent enough of my life waiting for things I couldn't have. Let's do this now while we actually can. While we're both free and here and able to make this choice."
"Okay. Soon." Matteo smiled—genuine and bright in a way I rarely saw. "My husband."
"Your husband." I tested the word. Liked how it sounded. How it felt in my mouth. "Stefan DeLuca."
"You like that?"
"I love it. How do we do this? Legally, I mean. Do we need a lawyer? Do we just go to city hall? Do we—"
"We'll figure it out. Diana can probably help with the legal paperwork. We'll get a marriage license. Have a small ceremony. Make it official." He paused. "Do you want a big wedding? Something public?"
"God, no." The thought was horrifying. "I want small. Private. Just the people who matter. Sandro and Emilio. Elioand Luca. Maybe Diana since she kept you out of prison. No media. No spectacle. Just... us."
"That sounds perfect." Matteo kissed my forehead. "Small and private and ours."
"When can we do it? How soon?"
"There's a waiting period for marriage licenses in New York. A day or two, I think. Then we can have a ceremony whenever we want." He thought about it. "We could probably do it within a week if we move fast."
"A week." I smiled. "A week until I'm officially Stefan DeLuca."
"You're already Stefan DeLuca in every way that matters. The paperwork is just making it legal."
