I grab her, pulling her back, and shake my head. “No. Amy, don't. This is between him and me.” I reach for Frost, my hand outstretched. “Baby, please, just tell me wha?—”
He jerks away from my touch like it burns him. The movement is sharp, full of rejection, and I feel it like a physical blow.
“Fuck it.” His voice is hollow now, empty. “I need some air.”
He turns and walks out the door. All I can do is stand here surrounded by silence and a hundred pairs of eyes. I start to hyperventilate. I can't breathe.
Paige steps in front of me. “It’s okay, Hope. Breathe,” she coaxes. “In and out… that’s right, like that.”
I follow her instructions and close my eyes to focus on my breathing.
What just happened?
I slowly open my eyes.
Chaos steps forward, his face serious. “Hope, what the fuck is going on?”
I open my mouth, but nothing comes out.
Pregnant with his kid?
The words echo in my head. Why would he thi?—
And then it hits me. The phone call this morning. The florist and her insensitive comment about me being pregnant, asking if that's why the wedding was rushed.
Yep, I'm pregnant. Sure, why else would I be getting married in a hurry?
Oh my God. Frost heard me, and he thought I was serious.
“It's a misunderstanding,” I say quickly, looking at Chaos. “This morning, the florist… she canceled our flowers. She made this shitty comment about whether I was pregnant, like that's why we're getting married so fast. I was being sarcastic. I said 'Yep, I'm pregnant, sure, why else would I be getting married in a hurry', but I was being a bitch because I was pissed aboutthe flowers.” The words tumble out in a rush. “I didn't know he heard me. I thought he was stressed because he was still sick. If I'd known he heard that, I would've explained right away. I'm not pregnant. I swear I’m not.”
“Shit,” Chaos grumbles, running a hand through his hair. “I'll go talk to him.”
I'm not listening anymore. The shock is wearing off, and now I'm fucking pissed. Frost didn't even ask me. He didn't even give me a chance to explain. He decided I was lying, that I trapped him, and he walked away.
“I think I should just call off the wedding,” I say, my voice louder than I intend.
Paige's head snaps toward me. “Hope.”
“No, I’m serious.” I'm shaking now. “If he can't even stay and fight for me, if he can't have a civil conversation about what happened instead of assuming the worst and throwing a tantrum like a child, then maybe we shouldn't get married.”
The words hang in the air, and I can feel every brother in the room watching me.
Amy grabs my arm, pulling me aside, away from the crowd, Paige right on our heels. Amy’s voice is low but firm. “Hope. Stop.”
“Stop?” I laugh, but it's bitter. “Did you see what just happened?”
“Yeah, I did. You know what I also saw?” She steps closer, her eyes locked on mine. “I saw a man who's terrified. A man who thinks the woman he loves has been lying to him.”
“I wasn't ly?—”
“I know that, and you know that, but he doesn't.” Amy's grip tightens on my arm. “Think about it, Hope. You two have been together, what, a few months? You're getting married in two days. Everything has moved so fast. Now he thinks you'repregnant and didn't tell him. He thinks you only said yes because you had to.”
I swallow hard, the anger starting to subside.
“You've been through so much together,” Amy continues, her voice softer now. “Working through Frost’s grief over his mom, moving away from Spring Valley to live in Nevada, away from your only family. The club girl at the party for your bachelor/bachelorette party, the food poisoning, the fucking flower disaster. Every single time, you come out stronger. You think one misunderstanding is gonna break you?”
“He didn't even let me explain,” I whisper.
