Marriage by Bravery - Book 3

Chapter Thirteen

Kim

I was cranky, more than cranky as a matter of fact but if this was some kind of test I couldn't fail. Even if it meant dying of sexual frustration.

Luca had for whatever reason had decided that there would be no sex before marriage and I was basically suffering. I wasn't some sex-crazed lunatic or anything like that but from my limited experience with him it was clear the man was a skilful lover and now he was telling me I'd have to wait before I got to experience the full extent of his abilities. This had to be a test, no other explanation made sense. Why else would he give me what was undoubtedly the best orgasm I'd ever had, only to pull back and say he wasn't gonna go all the way with me?

I was dragged from my broody, horny thoughts by my giggling god sons. I sighed at how inappropriate it was to be having those thoughts in the presence of children and the mother of the man whose bones I wanted to jump. I made a conscious effort to redirect my mind.

The twins were hands down the cutest babies I'd ever encountered.

Well aside from Kasey, I shook away the sadness that was trying to creep in on me, clearly I had succeeded at altering my train of thought. Unfortunately, the new direction it had taken was even worse than the one before.  I hadn't thought about my little sister in a long time. Her sudden death had brought so many new people into my life including the man I was going to marry, so I lost myself in the distraction they provided.  For the past few months I tried my best to put a happy spin on it all. I told myself that the good things that happened to me after she died were her gifts to me, she was my guardian angel. But as I sat with Lia and Mrs G, I couldn't help but miss her and ache on the inside knowing that she wouldn't be here to share this with me. As silly as it was, I felt almost guilty for being happy without her. I tried to push my somber thoughts away by picking up one of the boys and blowing raspberries into his tummy, his squeals of delight actually did a whole lot to warm me up.

The sound of approaching footsteps caught my attention and I looked up just in time to see Luca, Damian and an older gentleman with whom they shared an uncanny resemblance enter the room. He had to be their father. My palms grew sweaty as I mentally prepared for my first meeting with the family's patriarch.

My eyes found Luca's the minute he entered the room fully. My nervousness was no match for the happiness that flooded my body when I saw him. I handed the baby to Lia as he started moving towards me. I met him halfway and threw myself into his arms. Despite the fact that he had imposed a sex ban on us, I still felt a thrill in every fiber of my being whenever he was near. Not to mention the wedding planning was coming on great and we were slowly but surely gathering the information necessary to get the Abruzzo situation under control. I allowed myself a few seconds to soak in his warmth and let it wash away the burdens of my earlier thoughts.

"How are you, my love?" He asked brushing little wisps of loose hair away from my face.

"I'm wonderful, what are you doing here?" I asked cutting right to the chase, I knew he hadn't come to just say hi. 

He chuckled and turned us both towards the older gentleman, "Kimberly, this is my father," confirming my initial deduction of the man's identity, "and father, this is the love of my life."

I was no softy, but hot damn, his words struck me right in the feelings. For a moment I lost my ability to speak. He had just openly and without hesitation,  declared me the love of his life to his dad! The man who had been so insistent on the arranged marriage and who for whatever reasons had loaned us support from afar even when we diverted from his plan. I swallowed quietly, to dampen my suddenly parched throat, before speaking.

"Signor Giordano, it's a pleasure to meet you," I said, with calm confidence even while my heart had lodged itself in my throat.

"The pleasure is mine, figlia." He said pulling me unexpectedly into a bear hug.

Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!  What's happening here?! I thought, unable hide my surprise at this openly affectionate gesture.

The little bits of Italian I had picked up from spending time with his mother helped me to immediately translate what he said, not to mention Mrs G had called both Lia and I that plenty of times, so I knew that I hadn't interpreted him incorrectly.

He called you daughter and hugged you!!!

This was more than just affection, it was a public statement that he had accepted me as a part of his family. I was having the meltdown of century on the inside but I somehow managed to hug him back.

"Tell me dear, who will be giving you away at your wedding?" He asked, putting me at arm's length so we could look at each other as we spoke.

"Well I had planned to have Damian do it, since he's the reason we're together," I said with uncertainty.

He turned to Damian, "would you mind terribly if I asked to take your place?" Grinning like a madman, Damian nodded his consent.

My body froze in shock as I realized what he was about to ask when he turned back to me.

"Would you allow me the honor of giving you away at your wedding as your father would have done?"

The tears came hard and fast, there was nothing I could have done to hold them back so I buried my face in his chest and blubbered all over his expensive shirt.

"Yes of course, padre." I said between sobs.

He rubbed my back in a comforting manner before turning me into Luca's arms. My fiancé scooped me up bridal style and carried me to our bedroom. It was moments like this that I realized how close Luca and I had become even though the past few weeks hadn't been conducive to socializing. He knew without me saying it that I wouldn't want everyone to see me cry and wordlessly did what was necessary to make me comfortable.

Everything fell into place for me at that moment. It didn't matter that Abruzzo's were still a loose end, I could feel with genuine conviction that things were going to work out no matter what. Neither of us were the type to settle for anything less than  happily ever after. Kasey would have wanted this for me and I was determined not to disappoint her, so I relaxed. Finally letting that burden go.

Briefly, I recalled that we had left our family downstairs but they were smart people, they'd figure out that we wouldn't be coming back down for the night. With that thought in mind, I let the steady beat of his heart and his rhythmic breathing lull me into a guiltless sleep.