Page 56 of Nikolai

"Tih o-che-reh-Vah-tsel-na. You captured my heart the first moment I laid eyes on you. To you and others, you appeared to be broken," I shake my head, "but that was farthest from the truth. You are a woman of strength—a force of nature. You are the quiet strength in the storm you've walked through. You are the woman I wish to finish my journey through life with. You are my future. I vow to protect you, hold you, and love you for the rest of my days. I will always put you before myself—always. I give my life to you, Leah—until my last breath."

I feel Leah's hands tremble. "Nikolai, I sat down to write my vows, only to end with a blank piece of paper. So, I decided to express the depth of my love using music." Letting go of my hand, Leah walks with grace to the piano nearby. She sits on the bench. Leah has never shared her gift of music with anyone besides me. I couldn't look away if I tried. Spellbound, I watch her fingertips begin to dance atop the ivory keys, as the cello player joins her. The beautiful melody she plays—A thousand yearsgrips every part of my being. She begins to sway as she plays, pouring all of herself—her love for me into every note.

When Leah finishes, there is nothing but silence. With help from Alba, who straightens her train, she makes her way back to me and takes my hand in hers. "I never had someone in my life to show me what love truly was until you came along. Nikolai, you showed me a man's hands should be gentle, and his words should be spoken with the intent to encourage and strengthen me, not used to tear me down and leave me feeling broken. You have given me a love I always thought was unattainable. You cherish me for who I am. You love everything about me when I find it hard to love myself. I feel like I've survived all the hardships in my life because we were meant to find each other. I'm finding the strong woman you see in me because of your love. I'll happily stand beside you for the rest of my life, Nikolai."

"Well, hell. I don't think there is anything else to say, except, brother, what are you waiting for? Kiss your woman," Quinn exclaims, and our family's cheers ring through the air. Wasting no time, I grab Leah's face in the palms of my hands. Leaning down, I kiss the hell out of my wife.

A few hours later,the celebration of our marriage is in full swing. The sun has set, and music fills the air. "Are you happy, Mrs. Volkov?" I ask Leah after I've whisked her away from her friends, stealing a private moment with her, behind the giant oak tree.

"Say it again," she smiles at me.

"Are you happy?" bending down, I kiss her neck, inhaling her sweet perfume.

"No, the other part," Leah says breathless, as I back her up against the tree. Her fingertips graze my scalp as she plays with my hair.

I pull her body close and whisper in her ear. "Mrs. Volkov," I feel her skin prickle. "I'm ready to have you all to myself," I admit, before pulling away, and the desire in her heated gaze tells me she is ready too. With her hand in mine, we appear from our hideaway. In the distance, near the boat dock, we notice that the family has gathered. "Come. I have a surprise for you." Crossing the yard, Leah and I make our way down to the dock to my boat. Letting go of her hand, the women gather around her, sharing tears and laughter.

Holding a bottle of vodka in his hand, my brother approaches me. "I take it you're eager to take your bride and high tail it out of here?" Logan grins. Jake and the rest of the men gather around, along with my father, who stands beside me. Quinn hands each man a shot glass, and my brother fills them to the rims. They raise their shots in the air. "To Nikolai and Leah." The others repeat his words, and we down our liquor.

"Ready?" I ask Leah once she finds her way back to me.

"Wait. Where are we going," I lead her down toward the boat.

"I'm taking you home."

"We're living on a boat?" She gives me a puzzled look.

"No, Malyshka. It is our transportation."

The name of the boat is painted in bold font across the back of the boat. Leah gasps. "You named the boat after me?"

"It is a gift from my father," I lift her dress and help her aboard.

"It's beautiful," she looks around. "This is my surprise?" she looks at me.

"One of them."

Her eyes grow wide. "There's more?"

Pulling off my jacket, I hand it to my wife and roll up my shirt sleeves, then busy myself, getting the boat ready to pull away from the dock. Moments later, I'm navigating us into the open water.

"Nikolai, Look!" Leah grabs my forearm, and I peer over my shoulder at what she's pointing to. Dozens of paper lanterns floating high, flickering in the night sky like stars. Beneath the beautiful display, all the women and children waving goodbye. Leah waves back, her smile so big it is infectious, and I smile myself.

I had every intention of taking my time crossing the lake to our destination, but excitement over revealing my final surprise has me increasing our speed. Before I know it, the home I've been building for over a year comes into view. Every light is on, and the backyard twinkles with hundreds of lights, I had strung throughout the trees and shrubs.

"Look at all those lights. It makes me think of Christmas." Leah leans into my side as I slow the boat down.

"You like it?" I ask

"Who wouldn't."

Bending, I kiss the top of her head, "Good. It's yours." I steer the boat bringing it to dock

"You bought us a house?"

"I built us a house," I reply. When we're close enough, I jump off and secure the boat.

"Wait," Leah rushes from the cabin. "You built this—when?" Reaching out, I wrap my hands around her waist, and she places her hands on top of my shoulders, and I help her from the boat. "How, I mean. A whole house. Who builds that fast?" Leah asks with astonishment as we make our way toward our new home.

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