Page 111 of Cruel King

He took me by the shoulders. “Do you love him?”

I stared up into my brother’s determined expression, and for some reason, this time, it was so easy to admit. “Yes.”

“Do you think that whether or not you’ve told him those exact words that he hasn’tfelt themfor the last months you’ve been together?”

“I … I don’t know.”

“He has. He knows exactly how you feel. Everyone knows exactly how you feel about him, except you.”

“I don’t think …”

“He loves you, Whit, and you love him.”

I shook my head as I pulled away from Wyatt. “You don’t understand. None of that is enough if we can’t even be honest with each other.”

Wyatt sighed, dropping his hands. “Then, maybe today shouldn’t happen anyway. Maybe it’s a good thing the wedding was called off.”

“Yeah,” I agreed.

But the words felt hollow.

And I felt even worse as we walked together to Dad’s hospital room.

33

GAVIN

Iwas fucked.

The wedding was off.

Whitley was gone.

No amount of texts or calls got me the answer to which hospital her dad had been taken to. So, there wasn’t even a way for me to storm in there and make this right. I was stuck in the middle of New York City, the city that never sleeps, with no answers.

“Fuck,” I said for the hundredth time since I’d watched Whitley get into that car and drive away.

Someone else, likely English, had contacted the wedding planner and the rest of our friends about what had happened. Camden and Katherine came downstairs and took control like they owned the place. Which they did.

Katherine took one look at me and rushed everyone away from me. Camden took me by the arm and plopped me into a seat at the bar.

“Give him whatever he wants on me,” he growled at the bartender.

The man looked terrified under Camden’s growing irritation and nodded. “What’ll you have?”

“Start him on top-shelf bourbon and work your way down.”

I nodded and took the first glass offered to me and downed it. I barely tasted it. Everything tasted empty and hollow with her gone. Somehow, I’d fucked this up as royally as I’d always thought that I would. Why had I brought up Safia then? Why wasn’t I there for her when her dad freaked out? I could have been on the way to the hospital with her right now. We could have been dealing with this together.

Camden clapped me on the back. “I’ll be back. I’m sending in reinforcements.”

I waved him off. It didn’t matter. Nothing anyone said could make any of this better. My wedding was currently being called off.

Fuck, money. I was supposed to pay people today. Balances were coming due, and I’d promised I’d pay it all. The money didn’t fucking matter to me, but now, it was the time, and there was no wedding.

“Camden, the money.”

He seemed to realize what I was saying without more explanation. “I’ll take care of it.”

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