Chapter 10 - The Queen of Michigan Avenue
One year later.
The grand ballroom of the Chicago Cultural Center was illuminated with thousands of crystal chandeliers and fragrant white hydrangeas.
Over five hundred guests—business leaders, federal judges, city advocates, and neighborhood families—had gathered for the annual Vance Community Foundation Gala, celebrating the completion of fifty new affordable housing developments across the city's West Side.
I stood near the grand stained-glass dome, wearing an ivory silk gown that caught the golden light, the emerald ring gleaming brightly on my finger. Beside me stood Noah, looking sharp in his tuxedo, discussing his upcoming law school internship with a federal prosecutor.
My mother was across the room, smiling and holding hands with her neighborhood book club friends.
A warm, heavy hand settled gently at the small of my back.
I turned to find Dominic standing beside me, looking devastatingly handsome in his bespoke tuxedo, his dark hair neatly styled, the ink on his throat peeking subtly above his collar.
"Enjoying the party, Mrs. Vance?" he murmured close to my ear.
"It’s not bad," I smiled, leaning into his touch. "The food is decent."
Dominic chuckled, pressing a tender kiss to my temple. "Which would you order from the menu tonight, Daisy?"
I looked around the room—at my thriving family, at the lives we had rebuilt, and at the fierce, devoted man who had given everything to keep us safe.
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"I wouldn't order anything else," I whispered, resting my hand over his heart. "Because I already have the only thing in this world that’s truly priceless."
Dominic smiled—a wide, brilliant, unbroken smile—and pulled me onto the dance floor, leading his wife into the light under the eyes of the entire city.
