Page 77 of Family Secrets

Turning to face Gino, Elizabeth placed her hands in his, tuning out the priest’s advice on the sanctity of marriage, allowing the calm his touch brought her to wrap her in its comfortable embrace.

“Your dress is beautiful.” Gino spoke loud enough for Elizabeth to hear, not caring who he pissed off for speaking over the priest.

“Thank you, I wore it for you.” Squeezing his hand, Elizabeth kept her eyes trained on Gino, wanting to say so much more, but feeling the eyes of her father and in-laws on her, thought better of it. Elizabeth wasn’t brazen like Gino, she was learning to be bolder, but her upbringing emphasized holding her tongue.

Gino wantednothing more than to demand the priest speed up the ceremony. He didn’t care about the reception that awaited them at a popular hotel in the heart of New York City. He wanted to take his wife, toss her over his shoulder and start their honeymoon now. He wasn’t gifted with an abundance of patience, especially when it came to sharing the center of his world standing beside him. When the priest finally pronounced them husband and wife, Gino ignored protocol by scooping Elizabeth into his arms, sealing their union by kissing her as he ran down the aisle and out the door, not stopping until he pressed her against the door of the limo.

“I’ve waited a lifetime for you, Mrs. Vitale.” Enjoying how the title rolled off his tongue, Gino laid his forehead against Elizabeth’s, their labored breaths mixing onto one.

“Promise me something, Giovanni.”

“Anything,” He swore, the subject of the request unimportant.

“Swear it will always be like this. No matter what happens, swear to me this love between us will never die.”

“On my fucking life, Elizabeth. On my fucking life.”

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