The pristine white interior of the Hamptons house feels like stepping into a war zone. Dove stands in the center of the living room, her wedding dress a cascade of white that bellows out from her waist. Mascara is smudged around her eyes, destroying the careful makeup that probably took hours.
"You bastard!" Her tone is vicious, but her emotion betrays her. "Youbastard."
Nash stands opposite her, hands in his pockets, expression carved from stone. He doesn't flinch. Doesn't defend himself. Just takes it.
Gabriel and Wren flank opposite sides of the room like bodyguards waiting for orders. Gabe's jaw works, his hands flexing at his sides. Wren leans against the doorframe, watching with dark interest.
Celeste sweeps past me. "Dove, sweetheart?—"
"Don't." Dove whirls on her mother, eyes blazing through tears. "Don't youdaretell me to calm down."
I feel him before I see him. Asher's hand slides to the small of my back, warm and steady.
"Come here," he murmurs against my ear, guiding me toward the corner, away from the implosion.
"What's going on?" I whisper.
"Dove just found out her fiancé's been fucking someone else three minutes before she was supposed to walk down the aisle." His voice is flat, controlled.
My heart cracks for her. What an awful time to find that out.
Wren appears next to us. "Should we kill him?"he asks, too seriously.
Asher throws his brother a warning look. "Not helpful."
"On the contrary, I think it'd solve her problem nicely."
"That's it." Dove huffs. "We're canceling the wedding.
"Darling—"
"Don't," she snarls, spinning to hold up a hand to Celeste. "Don't you dare try to spin this. It's not going away. It's done. Over."
"Dovey, we can?—"
But Dove doesn't give her mother a chance to say any more before she steps out of the room and onto the back deck.
"You can all leave now!" she screams, head twisting to look at the manic bride outside the Caine house.
"The wedding’s off!" Dove shouts wildly down to the crowd waiting below. "Turns out, Preston is another asshat man, just like the rest of them! Hope you enjoyed the show!"
And then she yanks off each of her heels, tossing them into the yard before stepping down from the chair and walking back out the way she came.
And I have to give her credit; her head is held high the entire time.
42
ASHER
Angry doesn't even begin to describe my father at the moment. He paces back and forth in his home office in the Hamptons house. His hands are clenched into two tight fists as he babbles on about my sister being a disgrace.
Surprisingly, anger bubbles up inside me too.
I should be happy. Dove's just taken herself out of the race for CEO, which means the position is officially mine. He can't make me wait now, can't force me to make my fake marriage more appealing to the masses when I'm the only option. This should be my crowning moment.
And yet, this moment is bitter.
Because while my sister and I have never been close, I can't stand that her fiancé abandoned her the moment before she was to walk down the aisle, and my parents have done nothing but make this about themselves.
