Chapter 14 - Luca's Ultimatum
That evening, Luca took me to the Drake Hotel.
Not the ballroom where gunfire had shattered the chandeliers.
He had booked the private terrace dining room overlooking the illuminated cityscape.
A solitary table sat under the stars, decorated with white lilies and candlelight.
Luca was dressed in a sleek midnight-blue suit, looking impossibly handsome.
As we finished dinner, the soft melody of an acoustic guitar played from the far alcove.
Luca pushed his chair back and stood up.
He reached for my hand, leading me toward the edge of the stone terrace.
The wind played gently with the hem of my midnight-black silk dress.
“One year ago tonight,” Luca said softly, his deep voice carrying over the distant hum of the city,
“You were working late on my east wing corridor.”
“Counting linen inventory,” I smiled, remembering how small my world had felt.
Luca reached into his inner breast pocket.
He pulled out a small black velvet box.
My breath hitched in my throat.
The city lights seemed to blur around the edges.
Luca dropped to one knee on the cold stone terrace.
The Don of Chicago.
A man who had never bowed his head to rival bosses, federal agents, or his own ruthless father.
He knelt before me with an open heart.
He flipped the lid of the box.
Inside sat a breathtaking emerald-cut diamond ring, flanked by two deep green sapphires that matched the color of the gown I had worn the night we took back the city.
“Emma Vance,” Luca said, his voice trembling with an emotion he could no longer hide.
“You walked through gunfire for me. You bled for me. You brought light into a darkness that had consumed my family for three generations.”
He took my left hand in his calloused fingers.
“I don't offer you an empire built on blood. I offer you an honest life, an unbroken vow, and an eternity of loyalty.”
Tears spilled over my lashes, warm and sweet.
“Will you marry me, Emma?”
I didn't hesitate for a single heartbeat.
“Yes,” I breathed, falling to my knees in front of him so we met as absolute equals.
“A thousand times yes, Luca.”
He slipped the heavy ring onto my finger.
May you like
It fit perfectly.
Luca cupped my face with both hands and pulled me into a deep, passionate kiss as the clock on the Wrigley Building struck midnight.
