281 - Ella Carter

281 - Ella Carter
Ella Carter

I never imagined that such a small ceremony, with so few guests and so far from the rest of the world, could make me feel so…

Complete.

Maybe that's what true love does: it makes everything simpler, more certain, and filled with meaning.

But before everything happened that afternoon, especially before Leon saw me in a wedding dress that, although simple, was so perfect for the moment. Or before the sun said its farewell to the sky, painting it gold, I was taken away from the family breakfast.

Literally.

"Come on, Ella!" said my mother, with that sweet authority of someone who knows exactly what she’s doing. "We have a lot to do, and I won’t allow you to be even a minute late."

My mother-in-law, Laís, was right behind, laughing with sparkling eyes.

"It’s just going to be among us, but you’re still the bride today, dear. And brides don’t show up to the altar with messy hair. Not even the ones who challenge their husbands, you hear?"

Fay appeared from behind with a tiara of small flowers in her hands.

"And if you don’t sit in that chair right now, I’ll dress you on my lap myself."

We all laughed, even though there was something different inside me, a deeper emotion, something undeniably beautiful that made me see every detail as eternal.

The room I entered had been transformed, and for some reason, I’m sure it was at my mother-in-law’s request. It used to be one of the guest rooms in the luxurious hotel that now seemed empty. Looking around, I was sure we were somewhere that felt straight out of a modern fairy tale.

There were golden mirrors scattered throughout the room and a white-upholstered chair in front of a delicate vanity. Soft light filtered through the linen curtains. Tropical flowers in shades of pink and white filled every corner. The dress was the same one my mother had brought from Paris.

It was waiting for me, hanging carefully, as if it too knew that this night was the beginning of everything.

While my mother did my hair and Laís adjusted the dress with the skill of a professional seamstress, the conversations flowed like music.

"You know, Ella…" I looked up as my mother began separating strands of my hair with firm fingers. "This wedding is intimate, just for family. But don’t be fooled, daughter. You are Ella Walker-Miller Carter."

I kept my eyes fixed on my mother’s face and saw in her gaze how important this was. I was also certain I wouldn’t be able to avoid this subject.

"You’re a billionaire heiress, and the world needs to know that Tommáz Walker’s daughter is getting married. I’m sure Laís agrees with me when it comes to your family’s business!" My eyes met my mother-in-law’s, who nodded slowly.

"Your mother’s right. The world needs to see you getting married. Officially and publicly." My mother-in-law echoed my mother’s words.

I took a deep breath. But I knew what they were saying was true.

Because I already knew it, and in a way, I was starting to imagine how that moment would be. Maybe I could go back to thinking about getting married in the grand Cathedral in New York.

I wasn’t just a loves truck student anymore. I was the heiress of a powerful legacy. And now, the wife of Leon Carter, a name that alone is feared and respected in the streets of Chicago. From everyone and everything, I saw the looks from some people at college and even the small headlines in the local papers about us. We were known, and I’m sure that someday in the future, we’ll be making the same appearances his parents make today.

And even though that had never been my goal, I understood the weight of it.

"I thought about it, Mom," I confessed, looking at my reflection while Laís sat next to me, watching the moment. "I think after everything we’ve been through, I want the world to know. But I want to do it my way and at the right time."

Laís nodded with a proud smile.

"Your mother and I already figured you’d say that. So it’s settled," she said, glancing at Amélie as if they were in on it together. "Eighteen months from now, when you finish your extended studies at college. Then, Ella, you’ll have the celebration you deserve."

"A castle, if you want," joked Fay, placing flowers in my hair. "And a white carpet instead of a red one."

"With all the names that need to see who you are," my mother added. "Mrs. Carter. The woman who walked among monsters and turned them into men."

I closed my eyes for a second, taking in the weight of it all.

That was it.

I loved Leon not because of his name, but in spite of it. In spite of the blood, the fear, the wars. I chose him. And now, I carried his name as part of me, not as an inheritance, but as an achievement.

"We’ll show the world," I said, opening my eyes with conviction. "But today is just ours."

They all nodded, understanding my point of view and my decision.

We spent the whole afternoon in that room, and shortly after lunch, the last person we were waiting for walked in, radiating joy that filled the entire room.

"You thought you were going to marry that boy without me?" Grandma Carolina entered the room, and since we were alone, she pulled off her hijab.

"Mom!" Laís walked over and hugged her mother lovingly.

"I was almost sure you wouldn’t make it in time, Carol. How was the trip, and your husbands?" my mother asked, leaving me and going to greet Leon’s grandmother, who had become a friend and advisor over the years.

"Can you believe we almost didn’t come? Bruno decided to go on a hunt with Hassan, and the two of them delayed everyone." I burst out laughing at the thought of Leon’s two grandfathers out hunting.

"Didn't Mahjub interrupt my babis’ plans?" my mother-in-law asked, outraged.

"Laís, by Allah, Mahjub was out there having fun with them on that hunt."

I started laughing, and after a little over half an hour of conversation, we were all there helping me put on the dress. It wasn’t luxurious, it was simple and beautifully elegant. The three-finger-wide strap gave good support to the dress, which flowed over my body as if it had been tailored just for me.

As the sun began to dip below the horizon, I felt goosebumps at the touch of the fabric and saw in my mother’s and mother-in-law’s eyes the reflection of two women who had dreamed of this moment. Each in her own way, surely for many years.

"You look beautiful, darling…" my mother said, wiping away the tears that ran down her cheeks.

"Are you going to wear flip-flops, or will you go barefoot?" my sister-in-law asked.

I thought for a moment, and with the idea in mind of keeping everything as simple as possible, I decided I would walk to Leon barefoot.

"Lola’s already," Fay said, and I saw my little bunny with a tiny veil pinned to her fur.

"I’m ready!" I said, picking her up in my arms, feeling my pulse race at the thought of going to see my fiancé waiting for me, wherever he was.

Carefully, we left the room that had become my private salon for the most important moment of my life. Everyone was dressed and ready, and we slowly made our way to a more private part of the beach. Even though Leon’s grandmother hadn’t pinned her hijab to her hair, she still draped the veil over her head.

The woman who had once been a terror in the mafia, as Leon had told me, was now just a loving grandmother, devoted to her grandchildren and deeply in love with her husbands. She appeared with seductive smiles the moment she stepped down the small staircase onto the flower-lined path.

"Hello, my little princess…" I heard my father say.

As I turned, I saw his tear-filled eyes. He was there, standing tall, a pillar of my life, dressed in a light-colored shirt with a perfectly folded handkerchief in his pocket. A man with a firm expression but a heart overflowing through his gaze.

My knees went weak, not from fear, but from the intensity of the moment. It felt like every memory I had with him was walking beside me now. From my first words, my first steps, to this moment when I would begin a new family.

"Dad…" I murmured, my voice catching with emotion.

He walked toward me with steady steps, and when he reached me, he held my face gently, as if he still saw me as five years old.

"I always knew this day would come, Ella. But seeing you now, dressed like this, with that glow in your eyes… it’s more than I ever imagined."

I smiled, my eyes shimmering too.

"Don’t worry, Daddy. I’m still your little girl."

He chuckled softly, moved, and offered me his arm.

"No, my love. Now you’re a woman. And the most beautiful woman this old man has ever seen." He took a deep breath. "And you’re walking toward a man whom, despite everything, I’ve learned to respect. Because he loves you. Because he protects you the way I always wanted. And because when I look at him, I see the same thing I see when I look at your mother."

My eyes filled with tears, and I held his arm tighter.

"Ready?" he asked, his voice steady again, though his heart still pulsed in every word.

"Ready."

We walked slowly down the flower-covered path that led to the most secluded part of the beach. Lanterns hung from thick ropes strung between tree trunks, and the flowers lining the way gave off a scent of freshness and tenderness. The sound of the waves mingled with the beating of my heart. Every step was a note, every breath a verse.

And then I saw him.

Leon.

Standing tall, majestic, holding Perninha in his arms, his gaze seemed to carry the entire sky. He wore an open white shirt, revealing part of his chest. But what caught my attention most was the brightness in his eyes when he saw me.

My feet felt like they were floating.

At that moment, the world slowed down.

As we approached the altar, my father stopped. Leon stepped forward, just enough so we stood face to face. My father looked at him seriously, and even without saying a single word, there was a silent conversation between them. A nod of trust. A quiet surrender.

He met my eyes one last time and then gently took my hand, the same hand that had held mine my entire life, and placed it into Leon’s.

"She’s my little girl," my father said, looking into his eyes. "But now she’s your woman. Love her, Leon. Take care of her until the end."

Leon nodded with steady eyes and a calm face.

"I’ll take care of her, Tom. Until my last breath."

The world stopped again, but this time for an eternal instant of certainty.

I held Leon’s hand with all my soul.

And then, the sunset became the most beautiful witness to the beginning of our life together.