His Juliet: An Age Gap Hurt Comfort Mafia Romance (Empire of Royals Book 2)

The sky was streaked with pink as the sun started to set, and Matteo and I stood at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the rooftop, waiting for the ceremony music to cue us. I had never dreamed of a fancy wedding and would have been perfectly fine with Romeo and me just signing a marriage certificate and calling it a day, but now that I was in the dress with our friends waiting for us, I understood why he had pushed for this.

Our relationship was the greatest thing I’d ever experienced and deserved to be celebrated.

My stomach swirled with butterflies. “Were you nervous before your wedding?”

Matteo arched an eyebrow. “No.”

Well, then.

“But I would have been if I had known I was marrying the most perfect woman in the world.”

I grinned. A couple of weeks ago, Matteo and I had been practicing self-defense, and he had awkwardly stumbled through offering to walk me down the aisle. When I’d said yes, I swore he blushed.

Marrying Romeo wasn’t just tying me to the man of my dreams, it was officially making me a part of this family.

The music started, and Matteo gifted me a rare smile. “Ready?”

I took his offered arm. “Ready.”

We headed up the steps and emerged onto the roof, which had been completely transformed. Sofiya and Sienna had forbidden me from seeing it before now, and my brain could barely comprehend what I was seeing. The cement ground had been covered with what looked like grass and an explosion of colorful springtime flowers. String lights above us glowed softly as the string quartet played one of my favorite songs.

The only thing Romeo had insisted on for the ceremony was that we had pink flowers. Pink, he said, for the color of my hair and the brightness I brought into his life.

There he was, standing underneath a flower arch.

My Romeo.

Matteo chuckled as I walked faster. Our surroundings, the decor, the smiling faces of our guests all blurred together until he was all I could see. His black tux stretched across his broad shoulders and was accented with a light pink boutonniere. I wanted to run my fingers through his perfectly tousled hair. But it was his smile that took my breath away and almost made me burst into happy tears.

When Matteo and I arrived at the front of the aisle, Romeo wasted no time snagging me by the waist and crushing me to his chest. I squeezed my arms around him, my anxiety instantly vanishing.noveldrama

“Fuck, baby,” he said, lips brushing against the shell of my ear. “I thought I told you to choose a dress that didn’t force me to gouge out the eyes of all our guests.”

I snorted. “No eye-gouging, please.”

Arturo loudly cleared his throat, and I pulled away with a blush. I hugged Matteo before he sat down, and then my hands were back in Romeo’s.

“We’re gathered here today to celebrate the marriage of Juliet Leka and Romeo De Luca,” Arturo said. “This is a very special day for Romeo, who knows he could never in a million years deserve Juliet and that if he ever hurts her, his death will be slow and painful.”

“Arturo!” I shouted, but Romeo just laughed.

“You are correct, sir. I will never forget how lucky I am.”

“See that you don’t,” Arturo said sternly before winking at me. I rolled my eyes, but secretly loved that he cared so much.

The rest of the short ceremony happened in a haze. Romeo’s hands tightly held mine, keeping me grounded as we recited our vows. When it was time to exchange rings, Arturo said a blessing over them and held them out for us.

It was only at that moment, as I got ready to slide Romeo’s gold band onto his finger, that I saw it.

“What did you do?” I blurted out, forgetting we were in the middle of our wedding ceremony.

Romeo smirked. “I was wondering how long it would take you to notice.”

I lifted his hand in mine, jaw dropped, because it was now covered in tattoos. Letters on his fingers spelled out angel, and spreading down across his hand and wrist was a large rose. “I got one more, but I’ll have to show that one to you later,” he said with a wink.

“I can’t believe you did this.” My throat tightened as tears threatened to ruin my makeup.

Rough hands cupped my face. “It’s you and me forever, angel. My stellina, my sweetheart. I love you.”

After years and years of not being chosen by foster families, of being isolated and alone, Romeo had permanently marked himself for me. He had chosen me.

“I love you, too.” My words were hoarse and filled with emotion.

Romeo pressed a kiss to my forehead before squeezing my hand. “Now put that ring on me, wife.”

My lips curved in a smile. “Whatever you say, husband.”

I gently pushed it onto his finger, not wanting to aggravate the fresh tattoo. He wasted no time sliding my wedding band on.

“Alright, that’s enough sappiness,” Arturo grumbled. “Now that you have sealed your vows with the exchanging of rings, I pronounce you husband and wife. Romeo, you may kiss your bride.”

My husband pulled me in flush to his body with one arm around my waist and the other caressing my face. His lips met mine, soft and insistent.

Kissing him felt like coming home.

Our guests’ cheers brought me back to reality. Allegra, Sienna, and Sofiya were all wiping their eyes. Angelo let out a whoop, and Queenie’s tail flicked as she sat in Matteo’s arms, looking regal in her crown.

Romeo took my hand and we headed down the aisle. I squealed when our guests started throwing flower petals. In the swirl of flowers and laughter, the world felt absolutely perfect.