Page 30 of Pomegranate Kiss

Nellie blew out an exasperated breath. “I made it clear missing my oldest brother’s wedding is a dealbreaker,” was all she left it at, though her lips pressed tight together.

“Baseball bat offer applies for you too, Nells,” Lex said, cracking her knuckles out in front of her.

“No matter what happens today, it’ll all shake out,” Cam said, taking a seat on the bed next to Danny. If she sat beside Lex, she’d have a serious problem keeping her hands to herself, especially with the way that lavender dress highlighted tonedbiceps and tattoos she wanted to lick. “The important thing is today you’re marrying the guy you’ve been in love with half your life, and you’ve got the rest of your life to create beautiful memories together.”

“Besides, it isn’t a Dukas wedding without a little chaos,” Lex drawled, snagging the flask from Danny and tipping back a sip.

“You’re telling me,” Nellie grumbled, crouching in front of the mirror to fidget with strands of hair. It was clear nerves rode her over Greg rather than any real need to adjust. “Aunt Miriam projectile vomited on our dance floor at mine, plus Matty and Cal got in a fight Adrian needed to break up, and let’s not even go into the Cold War between Greg’s family and ours.”

“I love your crazy, chaotic family,” Danny said, her grin lighting up her gorgeous green eyes. “I’m so happy to be a part of it.”

Cam’s chest twisted tight. In these past six months, Lex hadn’t been the only one she’d gotten close to. Nellie had become a fast friend, and after she’d seen Cal’s show with Lex, they’d started talking a lot more. And Danny and Adrian were her favorite couple in existence. She loved her own family, but part of her longed for the warmth that came with the Dukas family—the acceptance.

Tonight. Tonight she’d tell Lex…everything. For better or for worse.

***

The music swelled as they took their place in the line-up for the ceremony. Danny and Adrian had opted for a short, more modern one, which of course raised some complaints from the extended family, but neither bride nor groom gave a damn.

The open atrium had a greenhouse feel to it, Edison bulbs tangling from the rafters and strong Douglas fir beamsdecorated with hanging plants and crawling vines. Guaranteed, Danny could name each and every green thing in this place—Cam had never met anyone more passionate about gardening. Flowers the same shades as their dresses decorated the arbor, crafted from white wood and simple beams.

She settled into place beside Lex, more aware than ever of the inches separating them. Cam should be thinking about simple things like whether she was going to drink wine or gin tonight, but too many urgent worries clanged around in her mind, amplified by Lex’s presence.

What if Lex didn’t want the same thing? Their constant texts continued nightly until one of them drifted to bed, and the way they’d been spending more and more time over each other’s houses contradicted the thought. Yet Lex couldn’t even commit to the permanent seat she’d been offered at Inkspirations—how could she offer the stability Cam needed?

Or Lex might decide the hassle of a long-distance girlfriend wasn’t worth the stress, even if Cam only had a year left to complete, providing everything went well at SCAD.

She swallowed hard and kept her focus trained on the aisle, watching Danny approach with slow, deliberate steps. Her best friend radiated confidence Cam wished she possessed. Danny strode forward, her mom beaming as she walked her down the aisle. Granted, Danny’s journey to get to this point had been a waking nightmare. Not only had she spent years on the run from her homicidal father, unable to form anything lasting, but even when she reconnected with Adrian, they’d encountered their own hurdles.

At least two hundred guests sat in the seats, a gentle murmur coming from the crowd. Half of them were Adrian’s ever-expanding family— aunts, uncles, and cousins included— many with similar features to the other Dukas siblings. The moment Danny passed them, line after line of people silenced.

Adrian’s face lit up like he stared at the sunrise. He looked sharper than ever in his tailored suit, which brought out the glass-edge line of his jaw and the blue in his eyes, so similar to Nellie’s.

Danny’s gaze softened as her mother stepped away to take her seat, and she walked the rest of the way to meet the man she loved.

Cam’s heart squeezed tight. She wanted that sort of love, that sort of connection so badly she could taste it in the air. Yet every time she reached, it eluded her.

Lex brushed elbows with her, and Cam glanced up to see a tenderness in those hazel eyes that made her hope, even though she approached on trembling and uncertain legs. The gentle touch coaxed her out. The way Lex saw her—the real her beneath all the sarcasm and defenses—made her unfurl like a ballerina in pirouette.

The officiant began his speech, and Cam gripped her bouquet tighter, her focus returning to the radiant couple decked out in their finest as they clasped hands in front of each other. The stargazer lilies popped against the canvas of soft, full petaled begonias, the perfume wafting from them gentle and sweet. The words blended together as her eyes heated, emotions cracking open like someone had struck her with a hammer.

Crap, she wouldn’t be the girl who cried at weddings, not here in front of everyone.

Danny and Adrian stared into each other’s eyes as they exchanged their vows, something powerful between them she could feel even from where she stood. That was what she wanted—that sort of potent bond. Trouble was, she’d only ever felt it with one person, who happened to be standing right next to her.

Lex shifted again, this time her thigh brushing against Cam’s. She swallowed hard. Damn, she wanted this woman like her next breath. She wanted the PDA without the crash of shame tofollow, to fall into her bed every night and wake up in a mess of tangled limbs and tousled sheets, to simply just be in her presence.

“Back in high school, I knew you were the one,” Adrian said, his voice a low scrape. “And in our time together I grow surer every day. You inspire me, you center me, and you fill my life with a sense of wonder I’d forgotten I could have.” He clasped her hands tighter. Nellie sniffled on Cam’s other side, a few tears slipping down her cheeks.

Danny offered a slanted smile, her green eyes glistening as she tilted her head to the side. “What can I say to compete with that, folks?” A couple of laughs came from the crowd, and Cam couldn’t help her own. Leave it to Danny to be frank and snarky during such an emotional moment. Her best friend sucked in a shaky breath and looked into Adrian’s eyes.

“I traveled from city to city for years, and in all my travels, only one man sparked this fire in me, some hot track star I used to tutor in high school. Big crazy family, I think you know him?” Adrian’s eyes crinkled with his grin, and Danny continued. “You fought for me, and you fought for this. You are the reason I got to stay. And each day I’ve spent by your side, you continue to be the reason I dream of what will come in our future, which I’ll forever be grateful for.”

Cam’s eyes burned with tears as she looked out to the audience. Mama Dukas sobbed into her handkerchief, and her husband, Nikos, wrapped an arm around her shoulder, drawing her close. Glittering eyes and sniffles came from so many sources out in the crowd, everyone here thrilled to witness Danny and Adrian’s marriage. Before she realized it, the officiant swept through the rest of the vows with a smooth liquidity, and Adrian placed his hands around Danny’s waist as he leaned in to kiss the bride.

The swell of music followed, and Cam snapped into focus for the cues of when she needed to head down the aisle. She clutched the bouquet tight, the wrap crinkling, and tried to blink away the water in her eyes. Lex’s plum lips quirked into a grin, but she remained as cool and calm as ever. Nellie, on the other hand, wiped away the tears streaming down her cheeks in the wake of the beautiful ceremony.

Danny and Adrian set down the aisle first in a flood of cheers that traveled to the wooden rafters, and then Lex and Cal followed right after. Cam took her cue and looped arms with Matty to trail down the aisle in the recessional, Mitch and Nellie walking behind them.

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