Page 75 of Ties That Bind Us

“There’s more?” I laughed anxiously. At this point, all I could think about was seeing Nick.

“You didn’t think we were going to send you out of here in your swimsuit, did you?” Angel winked again and led me into a room that looked like a giant closet. There were hundreds of dresses, and even more shoes and jewelry. It was like my absolute dream closet. My eyes widened as I looked around, taking everything in, and I ran my fingers along the fine materials of the dresses. This place was incredible.

“Pick whatever you like!” Angel squealed excitedly, fanning her arms out around the room.

Was she serious? It would be impossible to pick. There were hundreds of options and I imagined myself trying each one of them on. As if reading my mind, Angel grabbed a short, white dress off of a hanger and thrust it at me. “Why don’t you try this one? It will look beautiful with your complexion.”

By the time I came out of the dressing room, she had a pair of shoes picked out that were exactly my size. Whatever Nick had planned, I knew this wasn’t going to be a normal date. Everything was too perfect, working out too well. Something about today was special.

When I was finally dressed and Angel had given me her seal of approval, Rose led me outside. We walked down the pathway and she made small talk, but I couldn’t shake the feeling of anxiety that was growing in my chest. Surprises weren’t my favorite thing in the world, and with all this buildup, I wasn’t sure what to expect.

“If you go right down those stairs, I think you’ll find what you’re looking for. It was a pleasure to meet you, sweet Ava. Enjoy your evening.” She gave me a tight hug before leaving me at the top of the steps.

I took a deep breath and stepped forward, looking down the staircase.

Nick was standing with his back to me, talking to another man on the beach. My heart skipped a beat watching as the sun set behind him, white sand all around us. It was like the most beautiful painting I’d ever seen. I was overcome with emotion, and wondered how I had possibly made it to this moment. How we had made it here together. Nick was so incredible, reorganizing his life for me, doing everything he could to protect me, treating me like an absolute queen. It was in this moment as I made my way down to him that I realized how much I trusted him. That I knew he was telling the truth about my father, no matter how badly I didn’t want to admit it.

Nick didn’t hear me coming until I was almost down, and when he did, he turned around, grinning uncontrollably. Why did he have to be so damn cute?

“Wow, Ava, you look . . . incredible,” he stuttered, nearly at a loss for words. He bit his lip as he looked me up and down.

“You don’t look so bad yourself.” I smiled, noticing for the first time that he was wearing a tuxedo. “What are we doing here?” The way he was acting made me a little anxious.

“Ava.” He took my hand. “I’ve loved you from the second I met you. Nothing about our relationship has been conventional, and I know how hard it’s been for you.” He pulled a ring out of his pocket—my ring, which I had left in the safe in our hotel room. He slid it gently onto my finger. “When I gave this to you, I told you someday I would ask you for real, and that I hoped your answer would be the same. I’m not asking you to do this because there’s a treaty or because our fathers say we should. I’m asking you because I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

All the air left my lungs as I realized what he was doing, what this entire day had been.

Nick got down on one knee, still holding my hand in his. “Marry me, Ava. Marry me, right here, right now, on this beach, just the two of us.”

Tears pooled in my eyes. “But what about—”

“No buts. Nothing else matters. Nothing but you and me. I don’t want to let other people dictate our relationship. I want us to do what we want to do. I want us to do this the right way. Say you’ll marry me.”

I sucked in a sharp breath, trying to put how I was feeling into words. Nothing seemed adequate. Were we really going to do this?

Chapter 30

Nick

Ava was speechless when I finished talking, but the look in her eyes told me everything I needed to know. I was elated. Marrying Ava on our own terms was more than I ever imagined would happen. I briefly thought back to the day that my father had told me that I would marry one of Alessandro’s daughters. I thought he was insane, and had even concocted a plan to force the girl away. I couldn’t have known what would be in store for me. I wasn’t lying when I told Ava that I loved her from the second I met her—from that very first night, she was ingrained in me and I would never be content with anyone else. Thank God she felt the same way.

“Of course I’ll marry you,” she whispered, tears pooling in her eyes. “This is . . . this is perfect.”

I put my palm against the back of her neck and pulled her closer to me, kissing her eagerly. It was one thing to see the excitement on her face, but it was a whole different thing to hear the words come out of her painted lips.

If she didn’t want me to take her right on this very beach, we were going to need to get this show on the road. The officiant, Oscar, joined us, handing us each one of the rings I bought earlier today. Hers was a simple band of diamonds and mine was titanium, both engraved with today’s date. I wanted to remember this moment for the rest of my life.

Ava let out a small gasp when she saw her ring. Pleasing her would never get old. Oscar started reading vows about loving and honoring each other, but all I could focus on was her.

“Ava, do you take Nick to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?”

She smiled, keeping her eyes locked on mine. “I do.”

“Nick, do you take Ava to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?”

In my mind, all I could think was Abso-fuckin-lutely, but I decided to keep with tradition. “I do.” We each slipped the band on the other’s hand.

I couldn’t contain my smile; this was actually happening. When I had come up with this plan, I had no idea the emotion I would feel as it all happened. Ava was everything I never even knew I wanted.

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