Since I Fell For You(51)
Glowing with happiness, Valentina smiled and nodded.
“They’re so perfect together,” Suzanne whispered, instinctively leaning into Roman’s hard muscles. Though she hadn’t meant to make physical contact, she also couldn’t deny how right, how warm, how good it felt to be close with Roman—even if she only let herself stay that way for a second.
Calvin moved back into place as officiant. “Valentina, Smith, in honor of the commitment you are both about to make to one another, you have each written special vows. Smith, why don’t you begin?”
Smith gazed in wonder at Valentina for several long moments before he finally spoke. “Four hundred years ago, Shakespeare wrote,
Hear my soul speak.
Of the very instant that I saw you,
Did my heart fly at your service.
“I spoke those words dozens of times from the stage before I ever truly understood them. Because the moment I first laid eyes on you, Valentina, my heart didn’t just fly, it soared.” When tears spilled down her cheeks, he reached up with their clasped hands to gently wipe them away. “I grew up with a mother and father who shared a love that was so strong, I thought I already understood big love. But the day you walked into my life, I instantly fell for your smart mouth, your brilliant mind, and your fierce passion for family. That was when I finally learned how deep, how true, love could be. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to see you smile, to hear you laugh, to make you happy. And I’ve never wanted anything more than I want to be here with you now, knowing you’ll soon be mine forever.”
Valentina moved her hands from Smith’s to cup his jaw, her cheeks wet with tears. She was so radiant with emotion that Suzanne’s chest squeezed tight.
“I love you,” Valentina whispered to Smith, before giving him a kiss so full of love that Suzanne felt it radiate from the gazebo to her seat.
When the couple finally drew back from each other, Valentina took Smith’s hands again. She inhaled a long breath as if to ground herself. “I always swore I wasn’t afraid of anything, that there was nothing I couldn’t handle if I only put in enough hard work and effort. And then I met you.” Her lips trembled with emotion. “Falling for you was the scariest thing in the entire world, and losing my heart to you was the most terrifying thing I could imagine. Until I finally realized why I was so afraid. I thought I was going to lose myself in you, when the truth is that with you is where I’ve finally found everything that truly matters. Because of your support, and your belief in me, and your unconditional, unwavering conviction that we are soul mates. Your love was, and is, the biggest, most beautiful thing I’ve ever known. And I promise to love you forever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever and—”
Valentina’s words were lost as Smith tangled his hands in her hair and kissed her so passionately that Suzanne had to fan herself so she didn’t overheat. Even Roman seemed blown away, saying, “Hot damn,” under his breath.
Everyone in the audience was on their feet cheering as the couple exchanged rings and Calvin said, “By the power vested in me by the State of New York, I now pronounce you husband and wife.”
Suzanne had heard nearly a dozen touching wedding vows these past few years as her cousins from San Francisco and Seattle married off one by one, but they’d never meant as much to her as they did today. Everything Smith and Valentina had said to each other about fear and flying resonated deeply with Suzanne.
Because the very first moment she’d set eyes on Roman, something deep inside her had soared.
And nothing could possibly have scared her more.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Roman stood on the edge of the dance floor as Suzanne danced to a slow song with her father. She’d been dancing nonstop with family and friends since the band had begun to play. Though he tried like hell not to let himself notice, he hadn’t been able to look away as she swayed her hips like she’d been born to dance instead of program computers.
Seeing how innately sensual she had been during the previous songs had made his brain spin off in exactly the directions it shouldn’t. Where he was the one holding her in his arms. Where they lived in a world in which he could have her. Where he was good enough for her. Where he deserved to know if she made love with as much passion as she approached everything else in her life.
He shoved the thoughts away for the millionth time to keep his focus where it should be—making sure none of the guests made any suspicious moves toward Suzanne. All while keeping an extra close eye on Buck.
For the past fifteen minutes, the movie star had been watching her, and Roman didn’t care for the look in the other man’s eyes. He wanted her, that was abundantly clear. After calling his investigators for intel on Buck, Roman knew more than he’d ever wanted to about the guy’s sexual proclivities. Nothing even remotely illegal, but also nothing Suzanne needed to get mixed up in.