You Kept the Don’s Daughter Waiting and Now She’s Someone Else’s Chapter 12

You Kept the Don’s Daughter Waiting and Now She’s Someone Else’s Chapter 12

He looked at me, his eyes fixed, unblinking.

Sunlight fell behind him, and he looked like he’d stepped out of a lifetime of waiting.

When my father placed my hand in his, his voice was heavy.

“Damon. I’m entrusting Nina to you.”

Damon dropped all his casual bearing and bowed his head solemnly.

“Mr. Conti, I’ll take care of her.”

My father held his gaze. “Don’t just speak empty words.”

Damon nodded. “I’ll prove it with my whole life.”

The ceremony went smoothly.

When we got to the ring exchange, I realized he’d had rings ready too.

I could tell at a glance that they were custom-made. Inside the band, two letters were engraved.

Our initials.

I couldn’t imagine how long he’d been preparing all this, silently, without me giving him any sign. For me,

he’d started a war he thought he’d lose.

My throat tightened when I saw them.

Damon slipped the ring onto my finger and said quietly, “If you don’t like them, we can change them later.”

I shook my head. “I love them.”

His eyes lit up.

The officiant called for the groom’s speech.

Damon took the microphone.

He was always so quick with words, but that moment, he went quiet for a long time.

The guests laughed.

Someone called out, “Damon, look at you now!”

Damon laughed too.

But when he opened his mouth, his voice cracked.

“I actually had a long speech prepared. Practiced it a bunch of times. But now that I’m looking at Nina, I forgot all of it.”

More laughter from the crowd.

I laughed too.

But then Damon’s eyes went red.

“I’ve known Nina for over twenty years.”

“She cried a lot when she was little. She’d cry after a fall, cry over bad exam results, even cry if she couldn’t

grab the last candy apple.”

“Yet she was fiercely stubborn.”

“But she’s strong too. She always got back up on her own.

“I used to think someone that tough wouldn’t let anyone push her around. Then I found out I was wrong.”

He paused, looking at me.

“She’d make excuses for the people she loved. She’d pretend not to care. She’d hide her hurt.”

“Back then, I regretted it. Regretted going so far away. Regretted not coming back sooner.”

The crowd slowly went quiet.

Damon’s grip on the microphone tightened.

“Seven years ago, I told her that if she ever changed her mind, just look back.”

“For seven years, I stayed right behind her. I thought I’d never get the chance. I even told myself that if she’s happy, I’ll stay out of her way.”

“But today, she looked back.”

His voice finally broke completely.

Tears fell without warning.

He dropped his head, wiped his face with the back of his hand, then laughed at himself.

“Damn. That’s pathetic.”

People in the audience laughed, and some wiped their eyes too.

I stood beside him, and the tears kept falling down.

Damon turned to face mes

“Nina. I waited seven years.”

“But I’m not asking you to make up for that, I just want you to know that from today on, you don’t have to hold back anymore.”

“You can get angry. You can be difficult. You can be unreasonable. You want pasta? I’ll make it for you. You want the beach? I’ll take you. You don’t feel like smiling? You don’t have to. You need to cry? I’m right here.”

“Nina, I’m going to love you well. Not just right now. Every moment. For life.”

When he finished, the applause thundered through the chapel.

I was crying so hard I could barely see him.

The officiant pronounced us married, and petals rained down from above.

Damon leaned in and pressed a kiss to my forehead.

In that moment, I didn’t think about Luca.

I didn’t think about Coral.

I only heard my own heartbeat, steady, clear, one after another.