Page 203 of His Hell Girl

"Good," I whisper, leaning into him and feeling his warmth on my skin. "I love you," I tell him, my lips parted as I give myself over to a breathless kiss.

"I love you too. Always."

A FEW MONTHSLATER

"You knowyou don't have to do this, Sisi," my brother tells me from behind.

Fixing my hair, I turn to face him.

"Are we doing this again, Marcello? I thought we moved past that." I shake my head at him when I see the slight smile on his face.

"I had to try." He shrugs, giving me his arm.

As we head out of the house and toward the garden, he suddenly stops, laying a kiss on my forehead.

"I'm sorry," he apologizes, and I note that he really means it. "I've known Vlad my entire life, and I thought I knew everything there was about him. But I guess I never tried to look deeper. Not like you did." He gives me a brief smile.

"I may never be completely comfortable knowing you're with him, because I've seen him at his worst, and… well, you know his worst too." He chuckles. "But I can see how happy he makes you. I've also seen how happy you make him. Even as I'm reluctant to admit it, there's something about you two when you're together. Almost as if you're always in your own little world."

My lips tug up into a smile at his words, because heisright. There can be a thousand people around, but if Vlad is next to me, then it's always going to be just the two of us.

"I recognize you have something special, and you have my promise that I won't try to interfere again."

"Thank you. That means a lot to me," I tell him, going on my tip-toes to give him a kiss on his cheek. "And thank you for welcoming me to the family."

"Sisi. I'll always be your family." He pulls me into a hug. "No matter what," he continues, and my heart warms at his words.

"Good," I sniffle, already the urge to cry overwhelming. "We should go before I burst into tears," I joke, grabbing his arm and starting again toward the garden.

A small gazebo is at the end of the walking path. Vlad had built it with his own hands when he'd gotten the green light that he could finally do physical work. And he'd dedicated it to his sister's memory. A V insignia sits at the top of the roof, the shiny marble glinting in the sunlight.

There are two rows of seats on each side of the windy path, all full of friends and family. Lina, Claudia, Venezia and Katya are on one side, all wearing dainty light-blue dresses, each holding a small flower bouquet.

Their faces light up when they see us approach, and I send them an airy kiss and a wink as we continue to walk.

On the other side, Seth, Adrian and Tiberius are standing behind Vlad, their black suits dashingly elegant even though they must be sweating in this heat.

And then there's him.

My Vlad.

He looks nervous as he paces around, his head whipping in our direction as we near the gazebo.

And when he sees me, his eyes grow wide, his smile blinding as he looks upon me, his gaze smoldering with love and… I grow hot just as I feel his attention on me, a blush going up my cheeks.

I suddenly feel breathless as I step next to him, Marcello handing him my hand—with no funny retort either.

"Ready?" he whispers, tugging me close.

I raise my head, moistening my lips to reply to him, but as I note the wicked gleam in his eyes, my mouth parts of its own accord, no sound coming out.

The corner of his mouth lifts in a lopsided smile as he smirks at me, that sinful arrogance that always drips from him and makes me want to both kill him and love him at the same time.

Still, there's no mistaking the rapt adoration in his eyes as he peruses my face, moving over every inch of exposed skin and leaving a trail of goosebumps in his wake. He doesn't have to touch me or do anything.

Just the way he looks at me, as if he'd shred my wedding dress off of my body before prompting me to run so he could hunt me has me sweating under layers of tulle.

I know what he's thinking.

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