“Kinsey!”
She keeps walking, a peace sign thrown in the air as the door closes behind her.
Chapter twenty-four
Cam
The gossip mill hasn’t just spun—it’s combusted. By 10 a.m., half the town knows I had dinner with Kate Prescott. The other half probably has us married with twins.
I step out of my truck, coffee in hand, scanning the field. A couple kids are tossing warm-ups, parents settling into lawn chairs like it’s opening day at the World Series.
Knox jogs over, a smirk already loaded.
“Morning, Romeo.”
I don’t even slow my step. “Don’t start.”
“Oh, I’ve already started.” He falls in step beside me, bumping my shoulder. “Haddie Carmichael posted about youtwo at sunrise. Brynn gave me the play-by-play over breakfast. Heart emojis, Cam. Multiple.”
I scrub a hand down my face. “I’m blocking her.”
“You can’t block Haddie,” he says, like this is simply fact. “She’ll show up at your door with a pie and a camera.”
“I meant Brynn,” I deadpan.
He snorts. “Worse. She’d take it personally. I’d be the one to suffer.”
I huff out a laugh despite myself. Knox sobers a little, eyes cutting toward me.
“You good?”
A simple question, and for a second, I let myself sit in it. Then I blurt out, “She agreed to the marriage.”
Knox’s eyes look like they’re about to shoot out of his face. “Whoa, wait a second. I thought last night was just telling Evie about you two dating.”
“It was supposed to be. But after Evie went to bed, she agreed to it. We stayed up until God knows when planning everything.” I scratch the back of my neck. “We’re going to the courthouse on Friday.”
“Holy fuck.”
“Yeah.”
“Um, Cam, are you sure about this? This is really fast.”
I look across the field. “She wants my help. I’ll give it to her.”
Knox opens his mouth, but doesn’t speak for a moment. We stand in silence for a moment before he looks at me. “Okay, all right. So, you’re doing this.”
I nod.
He squeezes my shoulder. “Tell me how I can help.”
I exhale. “Be a witness at the ceremony? Help us get the mediator to believe it? And maybe help me keep my feelings in check?”
He nods like he gets it. “Of course I’ll be there. And I’ll try my best on the other two. Fake or not, this looks real from the outside.”
I look toward the field. Evie’s front of the line, chin lifted under a helmet too big for her. Determined as a general. Proud as sunshine. I make a mental note to get her a new one that fits her properly. Kate’s on the bleachers behind her—messy bun, knees pulled up, cheering and oblivious to the fact she’s the reason I haven’t slept right in a week.
And that feeling in my chest? It’s not new anymore. It’s just getting harder to ignore.
