Chapter 9 - The Sovereign Wedding
One year after the morning in the retail boutique, the historic Fourth Presbyterian Church on Michigan Avenue was illuminated by the warm, golden glow of one thousand beeswax candles and towering displays of white hydrangeas, blooming English roses, and fragrant jasmine.
The cathedral was packed with six hundred guests: longshoremen in tailored suits, harbor engineers, pediatric doctors, nurses, and domestic staff who formed the true heart of the DeLuca empire.
At the altar stood Damian DeLuca, looking exceptionally handsome, commanding, and completely at peace in a bespoke midnight-blue three-piece tuxedo, his dark eyes fixed on the center aisle with an expression of profound, unbridled devotion.
The massive pipe organ erupted into the triumphant, soaring chords of Pachelbel's Canon in D.
The towering bronze doors opened, and Natalie Carter walked down the aisle.
She looked breathtaking in an exquisite, custom-designed ivory silk gown with an eight-foot cathedral train of hand-sewn Venetian lace, carrying a bouquet of white calla lilies and blue sea-glass ribbons. Her face was radiant with pure, unshadowed happiness.
And walking directly ahead of her, proudly scattering white rose petals along the silk runner with intense eight-year-old concentration, was Ava DeLuca.
She wore a magnificent miniature ivory lace dress and a golden flower crown, her bright blue eyes shining with fearless joy as she grinned at her father waiting at the altar.
When Natalie reached the platform, Damian stepped forward, taking both of her hands into his strong, warm palms.
"I take you, Natalie," Damian said, his deep baritone ringing through the vaulted marble arches with absolute, eternal certainty. "To love, honor, cherish, and defend, through every storm and in every victory, for as long as we both shall live."
"I take you, Damian," Natalie answered, looking into his eyes with all her soul. "With my whole heart, forever."
Archbishop Conti raised his hands in blessing. "By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."
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Damian wrapped his strong arms around Natalie’s waist, lifting her slightly as he kissed her deeply beneath the soaring stained-glass windows, to the thunderous, standing applause of six hundred guests that echoed like music through the cathedral.
Ava bounded up the altar steps, giggling with pure delight, throwing her small arms around both of their legs as Damian scooped her into their embrace, lifting their family high into the radiant morning light.
