Page 45 of With You Forever

After all, it’s how they got here, isn’t it? One unexpected hookup and now she’s got Seth Kincaid’s ring on her finger. She laughs again. Who would have thought?

A ping on her phone.

Lacey checks, expecting a deposit from a new client; instead she finds a news alert in her email about the Brothers Kincaid.

Protective instincts have her bristling. StupidStar. Damn trashy tabloid has done everything they can to libel their boys. She can already see Emmy Lou picking up the phone to give them a piece of her mind.

But as Lacey clicks the link, she sees the story isn’t about the Brothers Kincaid.

It’s about her.

Her eyes pop open, the headline like a knife to her back.

From I Dos to Deathbed? What Are Seth Kincaid and His Future Bride Hiding?

No. Oh no.

It’s not true. But it could be.

It’s close.

Too close.

A guttural cry shakes out of her. Her hands tremble, bile builds in her throat as she reads the article. She wants to puke. Puke all over her wedding plans, her cancer, her life.

Another ping.

Sal:Lacey, can you call me?

The lump in her throat grows.

Ping.

Alabama:Are you okay?

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Lacey stares at the white shutters of the bakery, the happy dancing cupcake illustrations, and her vision blurs.

“It’s cake,” she whispers.

It’s just cake.

Not making important decisions that could ruin another person’s life.

A rush of hot tears fill her eyes. She can’t do this anymore.

She doesn’twantto do this anymore.

The light, the hope, flickers in her heart.

Extinguishes.

With a gasp, she puts the car in gear and peels out of the parking lot.

She needs to get away from her own heartbeat, from the wild racing of her mind.

Get away. Get away.

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