Page 76 of The Artist and the Muse

I spied Katerina standing off the dance floor, holding a sleepy-looking Mattias on her hip. The sight of them together made my smile broaden and I walked toward them.

“Katerina,” I said. “Thanks for being here.”

Her brows lifted. “It’s my brother’s wedding, did you think I wouldn’t show up?”

“No, but I’m glad you’re here all the same.”

She smiled, then said, “What’s with that sappy look in your eyes?”

“I just love you. And if you hadn’t agreed to marry Alexander, then I don’t think I’d be here right now.”

She shook her head. “Love always makes a way.Godalways makes a way. I believe that even if Georgia wasn’t Alex’s cousin, you two still would have found a way to be together again.”

I chuckled. “I hope so, but I’m glad things worked out the way they did and I get to be part of your husband’s family, like how Georgia is now part of ours.”

“Me, too.” Katerina bounced her son on her hip. “You know, I spent a long time being mad at you for leaving.”

“I’d be mad at me, too.”

She had every right to be. In my eyes, she’d always been the perfect Christian, the perfect daughter, and the perfect child in our father’s eyes while I was the rebel. In the past few years, we’d come to know each other as real people, as siblings with flaws and mistakes instead of the caricatures I’d made us out to be in my head.

“I resented you for leaving. But if leaving is what you needed to do to find God—if it’s what brought you here, and united our family in this way, then I’m grateful that it happened. It was all God’s will, after all.” She smiled up at me, her hazel eyes mirroring mine except they were filled with such grace and forgiveness and love that I could barely stand it.

I choked out my words through tears. “I’m glad everything worked out the way it did, too.”

“Thanks be to God,” she said. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I think your nephew wants you to carry him.”

She handed Mattias off to me. I took him, holding him on my hip the way I’d seen Katerina do. “I think you just want to dance with your husband.”

She shot me a grin as Alexander made his way over. “Guilty.”

Georgia’s mom made her way toward me. “What a beautiful wedding.”

“We couldn’t have done it without your help.” It was true; even though we’d had a wedding planner, Auntie May had helped plan alot of the wedding, along with Ava Steele. She’d hired the caterer and the musicians, as well as found a DJ.

Mattias gave a surprisingly loud yawn for such a small child.

“I think somebody wants a nap,” Auntie May said, reaching for Mattias. “May I? I could use a break from dancing.”

I handed him off to her gratefully. “Of course.”

No sooner had Georgia’s mom left, taking Mattias to a quieter corner of the restaurant, than Georgia appeared by my side.

She grabbed a glass from the refreshment table and filled it with lemon water. I did the same, and I realized this was the first time today that we weren’t surrounded by other people, taking pictures, or talking to family members.

“Looks like we’re finally alone,” I commented as we sipped our waters.

“Oh, the horror! Being alone with my husband.” She reached up to kiss my cheek. I turned so I could kiss her mouth instead.

She rested one hand on my nape, her body pressing up into mine. I wasn’t sure I’d ever get enough of kissing my wife, but I was willing to test that theory. When we separated, I kept one hand on her back, the other holding hers.

“How about we step outside for a moment? I want some fresh air,” I suggested, eyeing the soft moonlight outside and how it illuminated theFontana della Tartarughe.

“I’d love to.” Georgia’s hand in mine felt like an extension of myself as we slipped past the crowd of guests and darted around the waitstaff, towards the exit.

Outside, the air was slightly cooler than in the stuffy restaurant. Under the moonlight and beneath a canopy of glowing stars, I tipped my head back, awestruck by the beauty of the heavens. Georgia tugged on my hand, pulling me toward the fountain’s edge, next to the railing.A laugh tumbled from my lips at how perfect the moment was. How utterly destined we seemed to be, to come back to this place for all the most important moments of our lives.

We swayed side by side to the music of our heartbeats, her cheek against mine as her chin rested on my shoulder. I listened to her gentle breathing, wrapped in the warmth of her love. Silence hung in the air, but it was comforting, content. The silence of a couple who knew they’d have eternity to talk to one another. When the evening air got too chilly, and I saw Georgia shivering, I took off my suit jacket and draped it around her shoulders. She kissed my cheek in thanks. Then, we walked back into the restaurant.

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