Chapter 208: Chapter Two Hundred And Eight

Chapter Two Hundred And Eight

Alicia’s POV

I took a shaky breath. "I remember that night. I’d gone to your room because someone told me it was empty. That no one used it. I needed somewhere quiet to cry where Travis wouldn’t find me. Where I could just exist in my pain without having to pretend I was fine."

"And then you walked in. This dark, dangerous man I’d heard stories about. Malachi Blackwood who’d disappeared for three years. Who everyone was afraid of. Who was supposed to be a monster. And you looked at me like I mattered. Like my tears mattered. Like I was something worth seeing."

"You didn’t tell me to stop crying. Didn’t tell me everything would be fine. Didn’t try to fix me. You just sat with me in the darkness and made me feel less alone. That was the first time in years I’d felt like a real person instead of just Travis’s wife or someone’s possession."

"I fell for you that night too. Didn’t know it then. Couldn’t name it. But I felt it. This pull toward you that terrified me because I was married and you were his brother and it was impossible. But I felt it anyway."

"For two years, that room was my sanctuary. You were my sanctuary. The one place I could be real. The one person who saw me. And then everything fell apart and I ran because I was terrified of what you were capable of. Terrified that the monster I’d heard about on those recordings would hurt me the way Travis had."

"But you let me run. You let me go even though it was killing you. And then when I needed you most, when Zhao was coming and I was alone and pregnant and scared, you came. You protected me. You proved that the monster was only a monster to people who threatened what you loved."

"You gave me a family I didn’t know I had. You gave me Sophie’s safety. You gave me our daughter. You gave me a future I never thought I’d have. You gave me everything."

"So I promise you this: I will trust you with the darkness and the light. I will believe in you even when you can’t believe in yourself. I will stand beside you through whatever comes. I will raise our daughter to know that her father is a good man who chose to be better. I will love you exactly as you are because the man you are is exactly who I need."

"I will choose you every day for the rest of my life. In that dark room, you saved me without even knowing it. And now I get to spend forever returning the favor. I love you, Malachi. Completely and forever."

The officiant was crying now too. "The rings?"

Maurice stepped forward with the rings. Simple bands. Engraved with the date we’d met. Not the date we’d married. The date that had really mattered.

We exchanged rings. Said the words.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."

Malachi pulled me close and kissed me. Deep and meaningful and perfect.

The small crowd erupted in applause.

Lia started crying. Signora Moretti brought her to us.

"She wants her parents," she said.

Malachi took Lia. I stood beside him. The three of us together.

Our family.

Official now.

Legal now.

Forever now.

The reception was small and intimate. Dinner in the villa. Dancing in the garden. Toasts from family.

Travis stood up. "I know I’m probably the last person who should give a toast at this wedding. But I need to say something. Malachi, you’re a better man than I ever was. You saw something in Alicia that I was too broken to see. You protected her when I failed her. You gave her the life I couldn’t. I’m grateful for that. I’m grateful you were the man she deserved. Congratulations to both of you."

He sat down. Emily squeezed his hand.

Tom stood next. "My son surprised me. I thought I knew what he’d become. Thought I’d helped shape him into the weapon the family needed. But he became something else. Something better. He became a man who could walk away from power to choose love. That takes more strength than anything I ever taught him. I’m proud of you, Malachi. Your mother would have been proud too."

Sophie was last. "My sister deserves everything. She spent years putting everyone else first. Taking care of me. Surviving Travis. Protecting us both from our father. And now she has someone who puts her first. Someone who protects her. Someone who loves her the way she deserves. Malachi, thank you for giving her that. Welcome to the family. The real family."

Later, much later, after most of the guests had left, Malachi and I stood in the garden with Lia.

"We’re married," I said.

"We’re married," he agreed.

"Mrs. Blackwood."

"Mrs. Alicia Moretti-Blackwood. You’re keeping your family name too."

"Both our families. Both our heritages."

"Perfect."

My phone buzzed. I’d been ignoring it all day but curiosity got the better of me.

The internet had exploded.

@darkwave_critic: MALACHI BLACKWOOD GOT MARRIED. I REPEAT. MALACHI BLACKWOOD GOT MARRIED. TO THE MYSTERY WOMAN. IN ITALY. FAMILY ONLY. AND NO ONE KNEW UNTIL NOW.

@gossipgirl_nyc: Wedding photos leaked!!! She’s GORGEOUS. Silver hair. The baby was there. This is the most romantic thing I’ve ever seen.

@elitesociety: Sources confirm bride is Alicia Chen, formerly married to Travis Blackwood. Plot twist: she was MARRIED TO HIS BROTHER. This is MESSY.

@businessinsider: The Blackwood scandal deepens. Alicia Blackwood was married to Travis Blackwood before beginning relationship with Malachi. Family sources decline comment.

@celebrity_watch: Wait so she left one brother for another? Or did she cheat? What’s the timeline here???

@darkwave_critic: Guys. Look at the photos. Look at how he looks at her. Look at the baby. Look at the FAMILY there. This isn’t scandal. This is love.

@gossipgirl_nyc: Theory: Travis was abusive. Malachi saved her. They fell in love. Baby happened. This is ROMANCE not scandal.

@societypage: Travis Blackwood was at the wedding. With Emily. Who was supposedly dead. WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THIS FAMILY.

@elitesociety: The Blackwoods are messy but that wedding was beautiful. Small. Intimate. Both families present. You can see the love.

@businessinsider: Public opinion divided. Some calling it scandal. Others calling it the love story of the decade. Truth probably somewhere in between. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

@darkwave_critic: I’m calling it love. That man looked at her like she hung the moon. That’s not fake. That’s real.

I showed Malachi. He read through it and shrugged.

"Let them talk. Let them speculate. They don’t know our story. They weren’t there in that dark room. They don’t understand what we survived to get here."

"Some of them are calling it a scandal."

"Some of them are calling it love. I know which one is true."

"Me too."

Lia yawned. Tired from all the excitement.

"We should put her to bed," I said.

"Mrs. Blackwood putting our daughter to bed on our wedding night. This is domestic bliss."

"This is our life now."

"I love our life."

"Me too."

We went inside. Put Lia in her crib. Watched her fall asleep.

Then we went to our room. Our wedding night.

"I love you," Malachi said.

"I love you too. My husband."

"My wife. Finally and officially and forever."

"Forever sounds perfect."

His arms wrapped around my waist and his lips covered mine.