Page 77 of His Kidnapped Irish Mafia Virgin

Maeve walked beside her with quiet pride, and when they reached the front of the chapel, she kissed Nora’s cheek before placing her hand in mine.

“Take care of her,” Maeve whispered.

“I will,” I answered without hesitation. She smiled through her tears before taking her seat.

The officiant stepped forward with a gentle smile. “We are gathered here today to celebrate something stronger than circumstance,” he began. “Love isn’t measured by the absence of hardship, but by the willingness to remain together when hardship comes. The two people standing before us know that better than most, because their journey has been built on trust, sacrifice, forgiveness, and choice.”

Those words settled deeply inside me as the officiant smiled at Nora.

“Nora, would you like to share your vows?”

Nora nodded slowly before turning to face me completely. “When I first met you,” she said, “I thought you were someone I should stay away from because your world frightened me. I didn’t understand that behind all your strength was a man who never stopped protecting the people he loved.”

A quiet smile spread across my face.

“I spent years believing I had to survive everything on my own,” she continued. “Then you came into my life and showed me that love isn’t about control or fear. It’s about choosing someone every day, even when life becomes difficult.”

Her eyes filled with tears, but her voice never wavered.

“So today, I choose you again. I promise to stand beside you in every season of our lives, just as you’ve stood beside me.”

The officiant smiled warmly as Sean stepped forward with the rings. I slid Nora’s ring onto her finger, and she put mine on with a smile that reached her eyes. The officiant looked at both of us before speaking the words everyone had been waiting to hear.

“By the authority entrusted to me, I now pronounce you husband and wife.”

The applause hadn’t even begun before I reached for Nora.

I kissed her gently, taking my time as if I wanted the moment to last forever. When we finally pulled apart, the chapel filled with laughter, cheers, and the unmistakable sound of joy.

I looked toward the front row and saw Sean smiling with quiet pride. Maeve was wiping tears from her face, while Nora’s mother cried openly, her expression carrying equal parts joy, regret, and gratitude. And as I looked at my wife, I knew there was nowhere else in the world I would rather be.

EPILOGUE

Nora

Two years. Sometimes I still paused to let that number settle in my mind, because it felt impossible that so much time had passed. I stood on the balcony outside our bedroom as the morning sunlight spread across the O’Connor estate.

Birds moved between the trees, the staff began another ordinary day, and a gentle breeze carried the scent of fresh flowers through the air.

Ordinary. There’d been a time when I believed I would never have an ordinary life. Now I woke up beside my husband every day, and it was the most normal thing in the world.

The door opened behind me, and Liam stepped onto the balcony. He wrapped an arm around my waist without saying a word, resting his chin lightly against my head. It was such a simple gesture, yet it reminded me how much had changed.

Two years ago, I was afraid of almost everyone who came close to me. Now, the place where I felt safest was in a man’s arms.

Liam was still the man the world knew. He remained disciplined, protective, and dangerous whenever the family needed him to be.

He still spent long hours with Sean, Ronan, Diggs, Paddy, and Michael whenever business demanded his attention, and nobody outside the family ever underestimated what he was capable of. But the man I saw every day was different.

He smiled and laughed more easily. He’d learned that strength wasn’t only measured by the battles he fought, but also by the peace he protected. Watching him walk back inside to prepare for another day, I realized I’d changed just as much.

My relationship with my mother had grown slowly over the past two years. There were still difficult conversations and moments when old memories hurt, but we no longer allowed those memories to decide our future.

Maeve had become the sister I never knew I’d needed. Her warmth filled every room she entered, and she loved without asking for anything in return. Sofia remained one of my closest friends, bringing laughter into my life whenever I started taking things too seriously.

Together, they’d shown me that family wasn’t always the one you were born into. Sometimes it was the people who chose you.

I looked across the estate one last time before following Liam back inside. The day slipped by the way good days often do, without urgency or anyone looking over our shoulders. That evening, after everyone had drifted off to their own corners of the estate, Liam found me curled up on the sitting room sofa with a book resting on my lap.