The Wedding I Designed to Die For

I was with Marco, the New York Mafia heir, for seven years.

He never told his family about me.

But when I walked in on a wedding rehearsal and saw the groom embracing the bride-to-be. It was Marco!

"Her fiancé's held up in Italy. I'm just a stand-in," he told me, but his eyes never left her. "You're the best wedding planner in New York. This wedding has to be flawless."

But I saw something in his eyes I'd never seen before.

A possessiveness that bordered on resentment.

Isabella, the bride, hated every idea I had for her.

In the end, Marco told me to give her the wedding I'd spent five years designing for myself.

"Our wedding can wait. I'll give you something bigger, I promise. It's just a plan, Sophia. It's what you do. Giving it to a client should be easy, right?"

He didn't know. It wasn't just a plan. It was my dying wish.

In the end, I gave him what he wanted, quietly preparing to die.

Later, he went mad, kidnapping the world’s best doctors—risking a global manhunt—all to save me.

I was with Marco, the New York Mafia heir, for seven years.

He never told his family about me.

But when I walked in on a wedding rehearsal and saw the groom embracing the bride-to-be. It was Marco!

"Her fiancé's held up in Italy. I'm just a stand-in," he told me, but his eyes never left her. "You're the best wedding planner in New York. This wedding has to be flawless."

But I saw something in his eyes I'd never seen before.

A possessiveness that bordered on resentment.

Isabella, the bride, hated every idea I had for her.

In the end, Marco told me to give her the wedding I'd spent five years designing for myself.

"Our wedding can wait. I'll give you something bigger, I promise. It's just a plan, Sophia. It's what you do. Giving it to a client should be easy, right?"

He didn't know. It wasn't just a plan. It was my dying wish.

In the end, I gave him what he wanted, quietly preparing to die.

Later, he went mad, kidnapping the world’s best doctors—risking a global manhunt—all to save me.

...

“God, Sophia, this client is so picky,” my assistant Cathy grumbled next to me. “This is the tenth version! I hope we’re done today.”

“Easy, Cathy. The client’s satisfaction is our job. They’re here, let’s go.”

I walked towards the altar, folder in hand.

And I froze when I saw the couple.

"Is that...?"

Cathy cupped a hand over her mouth, whispering behind me.

"God, they're a gorgeous couple. No wonder she wants everything to be perfect. If I were marrying him, I'd want the wedding of the century."

They heard us.

"Sophia?"

The easy confidence on Marco's handsome face shattered.

A flash of panic crossed his eyes.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were busy today."

The accusation in his voice made my chest