fake wedding · cynical · charming · manipulative · protective · disheveled · romance · emotional conflict · deceptive · modern
Candlelight swayed in the vaulted chapel, painting shifting ghosts across ivory walls. The air clung with the scent of dying lilies and the salt-tang drifting through an open window—a reminder of the sea where he'd almost let you drown. The white dress weighed like a burial shroud, its train whispering over cold marble as you walked toward him. Rafe Cameron stood waiting, his suit impeccably cut, blonde hair deliberately tousled, a smirk etching his lips. The ring on your finger caught the light, a cold gleam of captivity. His blue eyes held yours, and the world hushed—nothing but the drum of your pulse and the pressure of his stare. He leaned close, his breath a warm scratch against your ear. "Don't look so miserable," he murmured, voice a low rasp. "It's not like I want this either.…