“Time’s up!” I zone in on her until her back gently presses against the fence. “What are you going to do about it, Mrs. Giannotti?”
I still haven’t passed the tag. Not yet.
Valencia joyfully beams at our close proximity. The glimmer in my eyes expands as her hazel ones roll at her misfortune.
“I think this is the moment it becomes game over for you,” I murmur softly.
“You haven’t tagged me yet, so technically I’m still in the game.”
God, I love her voice.
“Not anymore, darling.”
It’s heaven when I kiss her. A moan escapes Valencia and it evokes my own. The passionate kiss electrifies me, leaving me to fall captive to her. My desire for the love of my life has me wanting her even more intimately right now.
This game we’re playing…I’ve already won.
I pull away, leaving both of us wanting more. “Tag.”
Lencia kisses me.
Just as I cup her soft jaw to pull her to me, she pulls back with a smug, “Tag right back, baby.”
She’s such a tease—The type that hastens every beat in my heart ever so beautifully.
I don’t mind it though, because we have our entire lives to continue playing this game of love. And we will continue to do so until we reach the stars above and even then I will never let her go. I love Valencia Giannotti and our incredible family unconditionally. I’ll love them forever.
Her irresistible hazel eyes tell me the same.
She’ll love us forever too.
“Tag. You’re it for me, amore.”
And then I kiss her. All over again. Sealing in every one of our merciful vows.
When Giulio and Valencia’s story came to mind, the words didn’t stop flowing. Their story consumed me completely and with the central theme of healing, their voices came at a time where I needed them the most. Letting go of Giulio and Valencia feels almost like separation anxiety in a way, but I am beyond grateful and happy they are out in the world and most importantly, glimpses of their story will continue in the following inter-connected novels in The Giannotti World!
I want to extend a big thank you to every single person who has been a part of my journey and encouraged me in publishing my debut novel. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I wrote this novel during a very dark time in my life where I needed healing. Grief never stops. It is a heavy weight that stays with you forever. It stays with you forever because you will never stop loving that person, and hence the hurt, delusion and agony in grieving is permanent.
Merciful Vows allowed me to breathe in some fresh hope, and while the small peace we learn to grasp with grief only covers a small fraction of the pain, I found a way to emulate those feelings of love and loss into my novel in a real-life way. My heart is in every single word of this novel, in Giulio and Valencia and in their story. It’s all from the heart.
Just as I reached my editor’s revisions for this novel, I was once again hit with yet another loss of a very close loved one. All the feelings I was already feeling doubled. Healing never stops, but gratefully for me words unlock a little peace for me. So, here’s to all words, to everybody who has supported me by always there for me during Merciful Vows and to many more years of novels!
There are so many people I want to thank for all the love and support.
To Mamma, for everything. I couldn’t have done this without you—my best friend, my greatest inspiration, my biggest cheerleader. You mean everything and more to me. I love you!
To Nonna and Nonno, for teaching me a love beyond words. I will love you both forever. Grazie per tutto.
To Kristen Portillo, Gemma Woolley, Stacy Blake and Tash Drake—Thank you sensational ladies for making this book possible. I am beyond grateful for all of your beautiful work and time dedicated to perfecting Merciful Vows from the edits, proofing, interior formatting and cover design. I absolutely adore how everything turned out—thank you!
To A.D. Silver, for your kindness, accountability and heartwarming support. I could not have done this without you. Thank you for being such a kind friend, my Author WIP Challenge co-host and the best accountability partner one could ever ask for. Thank you for your constant amazing ideas. Thank you for the sensational phone calls and always making me laugh. Most importantly, thank you for loving Bryce “Hot British Badboy” McCarson just as much as I do!
To Sarah Wendt, for always being there for me with encouraging words and inspiring me to reach the stars. You always make me smile and I am beyond grateful to have met you. Thank you for all the love and support, for always supporting my David Gandy obsession (haha!) and for all of the good times. Our friendship means the world to me. Thank you also for being such a genuine co-host to our Author WIP Challenges!
To Brooke C, one of my dearest best friends and the kindest soul I know. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your constant support, love and generosity. So grateful to know you!
To Cheyenne Cierra, for your sensational talented work that always inspires me. Thank you for being such a bright, caring and supportive friend. Thank you for all of the advice and love!
To Betty Maxine, for your endless determination and grit. Your constant rallying me on and giving me so much love really touches my heart. Thank you!
To Gabrielle Villalba, for your kindness and all of our epic writing chats. Thank you!
To Rosemary Slade, for all of your support and being one of the very first people to beta read Merciful Vows. Thank you!
To all of my author friends for always being by my side, my Instagram writing community for continuously showing my work so much love and my wonderful people over in my Reader’s Facebook Group: Vanessa Luisa’s Lovelies. I love all of you. Thank you for everything!
To all my other family and friends, I wish I could list you all—thank you!
To the bloggers, ARC teams and beta readers, thank you. I appreciate you all!
And last but not least, I want to extend a big thank you to all of the readers because without you all this wouldn’t be possible. Thank you for stepping into this journey with me.
Vanessa Luisa x
Vanessa Luisa is a contemporary romance author. She resides in Melbourne, Australia, with her army of current reads, sassy cat and Tom Hardy…the latter is purely all in her mind, but shh don’t tell her! Vanessa adores all things from the Golden Age of Hollywood, Seinfeld and believes tea is a writing essential. Her love of reading and writing have always been with her, and while she has a background in certified personal styling, nowadays Vanessa is turning her dream of being an author into reality. She loves writing swoon-worthy, emotionally gripping stories with passionate alphas and strong-willed women. When she isn’t writing, Vanessa is busy running her own business and spending time with loved ones.
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Merciful Vows: A Bittersweet Second Chance Romantic Suspense (The Giannotti World Book 1) Page 44