Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 83248 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83248 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
“Enzo Custanti Falco and Rosellina La Rosa, have you come here to enter into marriage without coercion, freely and wholeheartedly?”
Enzo doesn’t hesitate. “I have.”
I’m so emotional my voice catches as I answer, “I have.”
Father Gallo looks between us. “Are you prepared, as you follow the path of marriage, to love and honor each other for as long as you both shall live?”
This time, we answer at the same time, “We are.”
I swear it feels as if a powerful emotion moves through the cathedral.
Father Gallo nods, then continues, “Since it is your intention to enter into the covenant of Holy Matrimony, join your right hands and declare your consent before God and His Church.”
Enzo turns fully toward me, and the entire cathedral fades until there’s only him. He takes both my hands in his, and when he speaks, his voice is steady, even though his eyes are shining with unshed tears. “I, Enzo Custanti Falco, take you, Rosellina La Rosa, for my lawful wife…” My heart pounds so hard it almost hurts, “…to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part. I promise to be faithful to you,” he adds his own little twist while holding my gaze, “and to love and honor you all the days of my life.”
By the time he reaches the end, my lips are trembling, and a tear rolls down Enzo’s cheek. I reach up and brush it away, then Father Gallo nods at me.
I draw in a deep breath, but it quivers on its way out.
Enzo’s thumbs brush over my hands, grounding me in the steady way he always has.
“I, Rosellina La Rosa, take you, Enzo Custanti Falco, for my lawful husband…” His features tighten with emotion as he listens to my vow, “…to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part. I promise to be faithful to you, and to love and honor you all the days of my life.”
Riccardo steps forward and places the rings in Father Gallo’s hand before stepping back again. The priest blesses our wedding bands, but I can hardly look away from Enzo.
“Enzo,” Father Gallo says, as he puts my ring in Enzo’s palm, “place this ring on Rosellina’s finger and repeat after me.”
Enzo takes my left hand, and when he slides the ring onto my finger, the look on his face is filled with reverence. “Rosellina,” he says, his tone deep and clear, “receive this ring as a sign of my love and faithfulness.” My vision blurs again, and his thumb brushes over the ring. “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
“Amen,” I whisper.
Father Gallo places Enzo’s ring in my palm, and my fingers tremble as I take his hand, and for a second, I just look at him. This man, who has been my friend, my safe place, my heartbreak, and my greatest love.
This man, who is about to be my husband.
“Enzo,” I say softly, sliding the wedding band onto his finger, “receive this ring as a sign of my love and faithfulness. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
“Amen,” he murmurs.
Father Gallo looks at us, then at the cathedral full of our family. “What God joins together, let no one put asunder.” Enzo and I don’t look away from each other as the priest says, “It is my honor to pronounce you husband and wife.”
My heart stops for one perfect second.
Husband and wife.
“Enzo, you may kiss your bride.”
My brand-new husband lifts a hand to my cheek, his palm warm against my skin, and the cathedral disappears around us as he leans closer. “My wife,” he whispers.
It feels as if my heart bursts wide open, unable to contain all the happiness I feel right now, then his mouth meets mine, and the kiss is soft and full of every promise we just made.
Cheers and applause erupt from the pews as people start calling out, Finally! and About damn time! and one very heartfelt Thank God! that makes laughter ripple through the cathedral.
But all I feel is Enzo as his arm wraps around my waist, holding me close as he kisses me like this is the beginning of everything, like every road we’ve walked has led us here, like from this moment on, the rest of our lives belong to us.
When he pulls back, his forehead rests against mine, and his smile is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.
“Hi, Mrs. La Rosa-Falco,” he murmurs.
The name was Enzo’s idea. He said I’m my parents’ only child, and there was no damn way the La Rosa name would end with me when we had the power to carry it forward together.