Page 117 of Born into Madness
She hands me a tissue and smiles at me. “And this is why we wear waterproof makeup,” she says with a laugh. “I couldn’t be any happier, Cindy. I hope you know that. Lev and I are so grateful Sasha found you. You’re perfect for him, and we’re honored to call you our daughter-in-law.”
I give up trying to stop the tears and instead just focus on catching them as quickly as possible. I reach over and give her a big hug. My own mom isn’t here today because the truth is I don’t trust her to not say something that will humiliate me and make me feel like shit on my wedding day. Maybe one day we can have a relationship, but for right now, I’m surrounded by love from the family I’m about to join my life to and all I feel is happy.
I’m just letting go of Jolene when Sav peeks her head in and then lets out a squeal before running over to hug me. She’d felt so guilty about me accidentally drinking her drugged Sprite, but I never once blamed her for that. None of what happened was her fault. It took a while, but I think she’s finally starting to believe me.
“You look gorgeous,” she tells me when she pulls back to look me over. “Sasha’s going to lose it when he sees you.”
“You look beautiful, too,” I tell her. She’s my maid of honor, and the red dress we’d picked out together looks amazing on her. Sasha told me he was making Niki his best man becauseof the tracker he’d put in my engagement ring. Without that, it would’ve been a lot harder for Sasha to find me. I’ve never seen Sav look so happy as when I told her she’d be walking down the aisle with Niki. They’ve talked a few times since he’s gotten back from Oregon, and I still have high hopes that one day Sav and I will share a last name.
While she helps me fix my veil, Mia, Nat, Lara, Sveta, Talia, and Yel all come walking in. They’d all agreed to be my bridesmaids, and all of them look stunning in their red dresses. Talia just gave birth three months ago, and I swear she has that new motherhood glow going on. I know Max can’t stop staring at her, and it’s one of the sweetest things I’ve ever seen. I quickly place my hand on my lower stomach, and I can’t help but wonder if I’ll have that same glow.
After I’ve been hugged by everyone and I can feel my nerves really starting to kick in, Lev steps in and tells us it’s time and that Sasha is more than ready to make me his wife. He gives Jolene a kiss, takes several quick photos, and then offers me his arm. When I’d asked him if he would walk me down the aisle, I swear he’d gotten a little choked up. I already love my in-laws so much, and I couldn’t be happier to have Lev give me away. I have no memories of my biological dad, but I think he’d be happy for me, and I think he’d approve of how Sasha’s family treats me. I hope one day my mom can see it, too.
Lev looks down at me and smiles. “Ready to marry my son?”
I grin up at him and nod. “I am.”
“Let’s go make you a Melnikov,” he says, guiding me to the door while the others slowly walk out. Sasha and I both wanted a small wedding, and when Nat suggested we do it at their house, it seemed like the perfect plan. She’s been busy decorating ever since, and when Lev and I step close to the French doors that lead out back and I see the fairytale-like setting, I suck in a quick breath and look over at her.
“Nat, this is so beautiful,” I whisper in complete awe of what she’s accomplished.
She grins at me and hooks her arm through her husband’s as they get ready to walk out together. “I’m so glad you like it. I worried there were too many fairy lights, but then I thought, that’s crazy, you can never have too many.”
“I mean, you can have too many,” Mia says with a laugh, “but you didn’t hit that limit, Nat. You did good.”
Dario pulls her away with a grin, starting down the aisle with her while I wait for my turn. I can’t see Sasha yet, but I know he’s out there, and I still can’t believe it’s me he’s out there waiting to marry.
My nerves are momentarily forgotten when I see Niki offer his arm to Sav. She looks up at him and smiles, and I know, without even having to ask her, that she’s definitely feeling fireworks right now. He’s looking at her the same way, and I’m not the only one who notices, because when we step closer to the doors, I see his mom dabbing at her eyes while she watches her son lead my best friend down the aisle.
Lev squeezes my arm when the music changes, and then helps make sure my weak knees don’t fully give out on the short walk to my waiting fiancé. I opted for flat shoes, but you can’t see them because the gorgeous white satin and lace dress I’m wearing falls to the ground and then trails out behind me.
I know everyone is staring at me, but I don’t see anyone except Sasha. He’s in a black tux with a single red rose pinned to his lapel—blood red and beautiful. He watches me, those light-blue eyes not missing a single detail as he takes in every inch of me. I’d kept my hair down for him, and I’m wearing the ruby necklace and earrings he bought for me as a wedding present.
He’s giving me his full smile, the one that’s so rare it’s like its own little gift every time I see it, and as soon as I’m before him, his dad kisses my cheek and then puts my hand in the onethat’s open and waiting for me, handing me over to his son in a symbolic move that makes my throat feel tight and my eyes feel too wet.
The corner of Sasha’s mouth lifts when he sees it. “Crying already,krovinka?”
He says the words just loud enough for me to hear as he pulls me closer so our bodies are almost touching as we face one another. He brings his other hand up to run his thumb along my cheek. “You are the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen, Cyn.”
Not trusting myself to speak without sobbing, I look up and give him a wobbly smile. He leans down to kiss my forehead while the officiant starts speaking. We opted for the short-and-sweet version, so it’s not long before we’re sayingI doand exchanging rings. He bought me a band of diamonds and rubies to match my engagement ring, and once he slides it on my finger, it’s my turn. The black tungsten band slips on his outstretched finger easily. There’s a single thin line that runs through the middle, an inlay of deep ruby red that perfectly matches my rings, and the blood-red tone makes me instantly think of him.
The ring looks good on his long finger and seeing it has my heart doing all sorts of flips. He’s mine. This gorgeous, dangerous, sometimes-scary-as-hell man is nowmine.
My husband.
I say the words in my head and grin up at him. Unable to keep it inside, I say, “My husband,” while he smiles and leans closer to me.
“My wife,” he whispers before he kisses me in front of his entire family and makes it official. They cheer and whistle, and by the time Sasha pulls back, I’m blushing and out of breath. He gives me a wink and then picks me up to even more cheers and shouts. As soon as he sets me down, we’re swarmed by everyonewanting to hug and congratulate us. I smile and laugh and feel like I’m living a dream.
Isabella breaks through the crowd with a happy squeal so she can hug us. As soon as she’s done, she runs off in her pretty pink dress and jumps into the arms of the man Sasha told me is the doctor for the Alessi family. He laughs and adjusts his dark glasses before swinging a laughing Bell around. The man who used to treat all their wounds is sitting next to his wife, an older woman who used to cook for the family but recently retired. The two of them smile and laugh, watching everyone while they sip champagne and enjoy the night.
Nat surprises me yet again with how sweet she is when I see that my meal is vegetarian. My own mom can’t even remember that, but my new sister-in-law not only remembered but put forth the effort to make sure several of the appetizers are vegetarian as well, and they’re so good that everyone is enjoying them.
It’s perfect, and when it comes time to cut the cake, Sasha grabs my hand and leads me to the table that’s set off to the side. The cake is gorgeous. It’s a five-tier cake with beautiful pink and red flowers that start at the top and cascade down in a wave. At first I assume they’re real, but when I get closer, I can see they’re sugar flowers, each one perfectly sculpted and lifelike.
“This is gorgeous,” I say.
“It really is,” Sasha agrees, and then he looks over at his Uncle Vitaly. “Adele’s outdone herself,” he says.
