Chapter 49
Chapter Forty-Nine
CAMERON
My wedding's in five days and everything is in place, though my stomach's still doing backflips. But everything's on track. My bespoke Armani tux hangs in my closet, black as motor oil with these satin lapels that catch the light.
The wedding cakes—his and hers—are sitting at Magnolia Bakery downtown.
Willow and I both want the same thing: dark chocolate that hits you in the back of the jaw, with these orange peel bits that explode with flavor, topped with raspberry buttercream frosting the color of a setting sun.
At least her cake has frosting the color of a setting sun.
My cake, same flavors of chocolate, orange, and raspberry is a doctor cake—a light blue fondant base sculpted to look like scrubs, topped with a realistic torso in a pristine white coat, complete with a tiny silver stethoscope draped around the neck and even miniature pockets filled with icing pens and a name badge that reads "Dr. Kensington" in perfect cursive.
The reception menu is insane: Wagyu steak so tender you barely need to chew it, salmon with skin that crunches between your teeth, and for the vegans, these mushroom pastry things that are actually pretty damn good - mushrooms and toasted walnuts in a puff pastry.
Probably will try one of those myself. Every plate comes with grilled asparagus and cheesy potatoes or vegan mashed potatoes.
Asher's handling all the shit I'm too exhausted to deal with—thank God I dumped it on him.
The guy's got an eye for detail. He keeps texting me pictures of orchids cascading throughout the reception courtyard and drawings of the gazebo with lights and fabric.
Willow's obsessed with flowers so we'll have them everywhere—peonies the size of baseballs, roses in various unique colors of orange, pink and coral.
Asher will turn that mansion into something straight out of a magazine, with those old chandeliers and hand-painted plates.
This whole situation has me in a funk. I keep asking myself if you really need love for a marriage to work. Plenty of couples stay together for decades based on friendship and shared goals, right? I genuinely like Willow—shouldn't that be enough?
Roman sees right through me. He keeps giving me these looks, like he knows I'm settling for less than I deserve. And once those wedding bells ring, that's it for me. No divorce. I've never believed in escape hatches.
Then today, Roman ambushes me with Lilith, of all people. She shows up with their new daughter, Aria, on her chest, takes one look at me and declares I shouldn't marry Willow because apparently I'm surrounded by some "black aura" indicating unresolved trauma or deep depression.
She's not wrong. Losing Tally broke something in me that I haven't fixed. Of course, losing Stephanie and Alecia are wounds that’ll never fully heal, but Tally.
.. she was the one who made me feel alive again after all that.
With her gone, I'm just going through the motions, pretending I've moved on when I clearly haven't.
Lilith's brow furrows. "Roman, at least take this." She presses a light pink stone into my palm before I can object. "Rose quartz. Opens the heart chakra. Might help.”
"Don't suppose you've got something stronger? Like a spell to make me fall for my fiancée instead of pining over someone else?" I try to laugh, but it comes out hollow.
"That's not how it works," Lilith says with a gentle smile. "No spell can override free will. I could do a red candle ritual for passion, though that's not really my specialty. I have friends who are better at those, if you want."
I pocket the rose quartz with a sigh. What I need is something to scrub Tally from my memory so I can give my heart to the woman I'm actually marrying.
But even in Lilith's world of crystals and candles, some magic just doesn't exist.