Chapter 9 - The Mafia Boss Who Once Terrified Chicago Asked Me to Marry Him—And Misha Delivered the Ring With Tears in His EyesTwo years later, Viktor proposed.
Not in a mansion.
Not in a luxury hotel.
At Magnolia Diner.
Booth Three.
Misha and Lucia decorated it with paper hearts.
They were terrible.
I loved every one.
Viktor stood.
“Amelia.”
“Yes?”
“I've loved you since the night you gave my son your last slice of pie.”
I smiled.
“I thought you loved me when I saved the trust.”
“No.”
“When I saved Misha?”
“No.”
“When I saved you from getting shot?”
He laughed.
“No.”
“When?”
He took my hand.
“The first time you told me no.”
I laughed.
“You're strange.”
“You knew that.”
He knelt.
“I spent my life believing strength meant controlling everything around me.”
He opened the ring box.
“I was wrong.”
His eyes filled with emotion.
“Strength is choosing someone and trusting them to stay.”
I cried.
“Amelia Hayes.”
He smiled.
“Will you marry me?”
Misha shouted,
“She already said yes!”
I laughed.
“I haven't.”
“You're taking too long.”
Everyone laughed.
I looked at Viktor.
“Yes.”
He slipped the ring onto my finger.
Misha hugged me.
Lucia cried.
For once, the diner wasn't dying.
It was alive.
Full.
Warm.
Happy.
The wedding was small.
Family only.
Misha carried the rings.
Lucia stood beside me.
Viktor's suit was black.
Mine was simple.
White.
No diamonds.
No cameras.
No strangers.
Just people who mattered.
When Viktor saw me walking down the aisle, he smiled.
“You're late.”
I laughed.
“You waited.”
“I always will.”
We married.
Then came the best part.
The children.
Misha became my son in every way that mattered.
Lucia became my daughter.
Viktor became my husband.
The diner became our home.
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And the woman who once had thirty-seven dollars became the owner of something worth more than any empire.
A family.
