Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 56507 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 226(@250wpm)___ 188(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56507 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 226(@250wpm)___ 188(@300wpm)
His seat is empty. I blink, doing a double take. Is he okay? He only would have left if it was something important. Last night, he told me, “This is going to be the most special night of your life …” Now he’s gone.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” the announcer says over the speaker system. “Before we move onto our next performance, please allow …” His voice cuts out, and Aiden’s voice comes over the system.
“… me to say a few words.”
I gasp and then turn when Mom gives me a nudge.
Aiden stands on the stage, the microphone in his hand, looking so dashing and handsome in his suit. He appears so much more carefree than when we first met. He’s got a smile on his face, his eyes twinkling in the spotlight.
“Ania,” he says, walking across the stage. It’s like everything else melts away. It’s like it’s just us up here. “My perfect, beautiful ballerina.”
He walks right up to me, smiling down.
“I loved you the first moment I saw you,” he says, and I hear several women in the crowd go aw. “I’ll never stop loving you until the day I die. You’re mine already. I’ll always be yours.” He pauses, reaching one hand into his pocket. My heart is fluttering so hard and fast. “Whatever path you choose, I’ll always be there. I’ll always protect you. Forever, Ania.”
“Forever,” I whisper.
We’ve been using that word a lot these past few weeks, and each time has made me smile more.
When he goes to one knee, there are more aws from the crowd. He takes out the ring box, drops the mic, and then says, just for me, “Ania Sokolov…” He opens the box to reveal a large oval-shaped diamond, with—oh, I’m going to cry, no, I am crying—two jeweled ballerinas on each side of the beautiful stone. “Will you marry me?”
I don’t have to think. The word erupts from my lips in an explosion of pure happiness. “Yes!”
The crowd cheers as he slides the ring onto my finger and then jumps to his feet, pulling me into his arms. We kiss, and then he picks me up and spins me around and around. With each spin, I see Lia smiling, then Mila, then Dimitri, then Drake, then Mikhail, then Teddy, and finally, Mom. Mom is crying, too.
I can’t believe it. He was right. This is the best night of my life!
EPILOGUE
MOLLY
Three Weeks Later
“Ithought I’d keep the family tradition of quick weddings going,” Ania says, smiling at me in the mirror as the makeup artist touches up her face.
I count every interaction with my daughter as a blessing, one I sometimes don’t feel like I deserve. Ania looks gorgeous in her elegant wedding dress, styled to hint at a ballerina’s outfit, with a slim corset highlighting her figure, which, though still slender, looks fuller now in a good way.
“Nobody will beat Mila and Mikhail, though,” Ania says, and Mila laughs.
“She definitely gets the prize,” Lia says, giggling.
I haven’t been able to stop smiling since the performance went so well until I think about after the wedding. Aiden and Ania are going to travel together. They want to see the world before they settle down for good, but I won’t let that ruin her big day. She deserves all the happiness she can get. She deserves all the happiness in the world.
“How do I look?” Ania says when the makeup artist finishes.
Lia and Mila join me as we all stand behind Ania, studying her in the reflection. Her cheeks are rosy red, and her lipstick highlights her captivating smile. Most of all, how happy she looks floods me with love and pride. After all she’s been through, she’s still been able to find her path.
“Beautiful,” Lia says.
“Angelic,” Mila tells her.
“Perfect,” I join in.
“I wondered why Dimitri and Mikhail agreed to go home. It turns out it’s because they knew my man was going to make an honest woman of me.”
I always love Ania, but especially when she’s like this. Her speech comes quickly, and her mind seems to move ever quicker.
“Are you ready?” Lia asks, laying a hand on her sister-in-law’s shoulder.
“More than,” she says.
“I know the feeling,” Lia replies, nodding.
“It’s amazing, isn’t it?” Ania says. “Like a wave of relief that you experience over and over and over again, forever.”
EPILOGUE
AIDEN
Two Years Later
Isit in the front row as Ania dances across the stage, her movements somehow more fluid and more practiced than when we first met. After we traveled for a year following our wedding, she came home and got to serious work. It wasn’t as though the traveling was just for fun. She took every chance she could to visit every studio worldwide.
Once the show is over, I’m on my feet, cheering and clapping with a big grin on my face. The pride never gets any less intense. I could watch her perform a million times and still make my own hands numb with all the clapping.