Page 122 of Warming the Sheikh's Bed & Love in the Fast Lane

She laughed, and wiped at her eyes. “Yes. A thousand times, yes.”

Epilogue

A year to the day later.

Aurora scanned the horizon from behind the small portal window, her blue eyes almost a perfect match to the sparkling ocean beneath. Where the water met the horizon, the hues changed, but it was still the same expanse of glorious color.

Beside her, in the confines of the luxurious private jet, her husband was reclined, his body relaxed, his mind at peace, his soul truly happy for the first time in years.

“It took me a long time, but finally you are Mrs Fontana, and I couldn’t be more pleased.”

She flicked her eyes towards him, a smile beaming from her face. “Wasn’t the wedding beautiful?”

He nodded. “Beatrice did us proud. Though perhaps a few less doves at the end would have sufficed,” he drawled with a small wink, and Aurora couldn’t help her giggle. The white birds had fairly covered the sky.

“She’s not one for understatement,” Aurora commented with a shrug. “And aren’t you the one who wants to shout things from rooftops?”

He reached over and took his wife’s hand in his. He looked at the ring – the understated gold band she’d insisted on, and smiled. “What’s the point of a huge rock?” She argued, when they’d been choosing the rings together. “I know you love me. I don’t need a massive diamond to prove it. I’d rather give the money to my old primary school.”

And so they had. A sum large enough to purchase a perfect five carat diamond had instead been given to a struggling comprehensive in the east of London. As the sun caught the ring, it glistened, and almost seemed to match her fair hair. Yes. The single gold band was perfect for his wife. It was beautiful, like her, and excellent quality, but it was no-nonsense too. Just perfect.

“You still haven’t told me where we’re going,” she whispered, turning her attention back to the window.

“You’ll see for yourself soon enough.”

She pouted. “I don’t like surprises.”

“You’ll like this one.”

“But what if I didn’t pack right?”

He grinned. “You will have very little need for clothes, I promise.”

She shook her head and something caught her eye, poked in her handbag. She reached for the brown envelope and ran her finger beneath the flap.

“What’s that?” Leonardo asked curiously, leaning forward.

“It’s an advance copy of the Hello! article.”

He watched with interest as she flicked through it, to the piece that covered the lead up to their wedding. “I’m still surprised you allowed them to cover the event.”

“If we didn’t let one magazine do it, there’d just be a heap of wrong information printed.”

“Show me what they have to say about us then.”

The photo had been taken at the duck pond, in Farnley. It was a close up of both of their smiling faces, and in the background, in soft focus, Aurora could just make out the Gardener’s Cottage.

“Where it all began!” The small print ran beneath the picture.

“Not quite, but we’ll give it to them.”

She grinned, and began to read. “Aurora Jones has long been the darling of the British modelling world. Her fresh and fit take on beauty was the perfect anecdote to the heroine chic look of the nineties, and she became a household name after taking to the runway for London Fashion Week, almost a decade ago. Despite retiring from professional modelling, her transition to an internet fashion blogger has seen her meteoric star continue to rise. She is the glamorous starlet that all of Britain feels a sort of ownership of. She’s one of our premiere exports, but at her heart, she’s unfailingly British.

It was only natural, then, that when Aurora began to date one man, instead of a series of eligible beaus, we’d be captivated by just who had won her heart.

Enter, stage left, the dashing but somewhat ruthless figure of Leonardo Fontana. He’s certainly tall, dark and handsome, with a brooding intensity that even got this hardened journalist’s heart racing. As renowned for his victories on the Formula One circuit as the stunning parade of women he’s romanced in the past,” Aurora pulled a face at her new husband, “it was clear the afternoon we travelled to Farnely to meet the couple that their love is as unique as it is real. Aurora seems to glow in the presence of Fontana, and rumours of his ruthlessness appear completely unfounded. At least, it was impossible to see that side of him when all he did was stare goofily at his bride to be.”

Aurora laughed and turned over the page.

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