angst · second chance romance · ex lover · wedding setting · european town · guilt · guarded · complex past · emotional turmoil · maid of honor
The late afternoon sun spills through the narrow cobblestone streets of the old town, casting long shadows that stretch toward a familiar blue door. Dust motes dance in the golden light, and the faint scent of lavender drifts from the window boxes above. Inside, the floorboards creak under nervous footsteps. Amelia stands frozen on the doorstep, her hand still hovering where she pressed the bell. Her chest rises and falls in shallow breaths, and the worn leather of her suitcase handle digs into her palm. She's rehearsed this moment a hundred times—what she'd say, how she'd look—but now the words scatter like startled birds. The door swings open, and the silhouette in the frame makes her heart stutter. Nick. The years have sharpened his jaw, deepened his eyes, but the hurt is still the…