The Invitation

Aurora Hayes never thought she'd step foot in Bellmare again. Not after what happened.

Yet here she was, sitting in her small Brooklyn apartment, staring at an elegant ivory envelope lying on her coffee table. The gold-embossed letters gleamed under the soft afternoon light, taunting her with words she wasn't ready to read.

She swallowed hard and finally picked it up, her fingers tracing the raised edges. Slowly, she slid her nail under the seal and unfolded the thick cardstock inside.

Her heart stuttered as her eyes locked onto the name.

You are cordially invited to the wedding of Eleanor Sinclair and Cassian Wolfe.

The air in the room seemed to thin.

"Cassian Wolfe?".She screamed.

The name alone sent a sharp, unwelcome ache through her chest. Five years. Five long years since she had left Bellmare behind—since she had left him behind. And now, he was getting married. To someone else.

She exhaled sharply and set the invitation down like it was a weapon that had cut too deep.

Lila Monroe, her best friend and roommate, peered at her from the kitchen, a spoonful of peanut butter in her hand. "You look like you just saw a ghost."

Aurora gave a hollow laugh. "Might as well have."

Lila frowned, padding over and plucking the invitation from the table. As soon as she scanned the names, her brows shot up. "Oh hell no." She looked back at Aurora. "Cassian? Your Cassian?"

Aurora winced at the possessiveness in those words. He wasn't hers. Not anymore. Maybe he never truly had been.

Lila shook her head in disbelief. "Wow. The audacity. The nerve. First, he breaks your heart, then he invites you to watch him pledge eternal love to another woman?"

Aurora sighed, rubbing her temples. "I doubt he sent it himself. Probably Eleanor's idea."

Lila scoffed. "Well, Who invites their fiancé's ex to their wedding?" She made a face. "Are they hoping for a live reenactment of The Bachelor: Disaster Edition?"

Aurora couldn't answer. She didn't know why Eleanor—or Cassian—wanted her there. All she knew was that something about this felt wrong.

"I'm not going," she said finally, pushing the invitation away.

"Good," Lila said. "Because that would be—"

"I mean, unless…" Aurora cut in, hesitating.

Lila groaned. "Oh no. No, no, no. Don't you dare say what I think you're about to say."

Aurora bit her lip. "Maybe I need to see him again. Just once. Maybe I need to understand why he never came that night."

Lila's expression softened slightly, but she still looked exasperated. "Babe, closure is a scam. It's just an excuse for your heart to get punched in the face again."

Aurora chuckled despite herself. "That's… quite the visual.

"I'm serious." Lila crossed her arms. "He had his chance to explain, and he didn't. He let you walk away."

Aurora swallowed the lump in her throat. She had spent years trying to move on, telling herself that what they had was nothing more than a bittersweet chapter in her past.

But the moment she saw his name, something inside her cracked open.

And she hated that.

"Fine," Lila said, throwing up her hands. "If you go, just promise me one thing."

Aurora glanced up.

"Promise me you won't let him pull you back in."

Aurora forced a smile. "I promise."

She just wasn't sure if she believed herself.

A week later, the ocean breeze tangled in Aurora's hair as she stood on the ferry deck, gripping the railing with both hands.

Bellmare was just ahead, rising from the mist like a forgotten dream.

Her heart clenched as she took in the familiar sight—winding cobblestone streets, pastel-colored houses with ivy climbing their walls, white sand beaches kissed by the rolling waves.

Nothing had changed.

She had once loved this place. Loved the way the air smelled of salt and jasmine, the way the sunsets painted the cliffs in shades of gold and crimson. She had loved him here.

And now, she was returning not as the girl who had dreamed of forever, but as a woman who had learned that love could be both beautiful and cruel.

When the ferry docked, she hesitated before stepping onto the wooden planks. The town was already buzzing with wedding preparations—florists setting up bouquets, workers stringing fairy lights through the oak trees in the square.

Her fingers tightened around the handle of her suitcase.

She had barely taken three steps when a voice sent a shiver down her spine.

"I didn't think you'd come."

Aurora froze.

Slowly, she turned.

Cassian Wolfe stood just a few feet away, hands tucked into the pockets of his tailored slacks, watching her with an expression she couldn't quite read.

Her breath caught in her throat.

Time had done little to change him. If anything, he was even more devastating than she remembered—dark hair slightly tousled by the wind, broad shoulders tense beneath a crisp white shirt, sharp jawline dusted with the hint of stubble.

But it was his eyes that stole the breath from her lungs.

Storm-gray. Intense. Unreadable.

For a long moment, neither of them spoke.

Aurora felt her pulse hammering against her ribs, her grip on her suitcase tightening. She had spent years imagining this moment, thinking about all the things she would say if she ever saw him again.

But now, standing here, face-to-face with the man who had once meant everything to her…

She had no words.

Cassian took a slow step forward, his gaze never leaving hers. "I wasn't sure if you'd accept the invitation."

"I wasn't sure either," Aurora admitted, her voice quieter than she intended.

His lips twitched slightly, as if he wanted to smile but thought better of it. "You look… different."

"So do you."

A flicker of something passed through his eyes—regret, maybe. Something raw and unspoken.

Before she could dwell on it, a voice called out from behind them.

"There you are, darling."

Aurora stiffened as Eleanor Sinclair appeared beside Cassian, slipping a perfectly manicured hand around his arm.

She was just as stunning as Aurora remembered from magazine covers—blonde waves cascading over her shoulders, emerald-green eyes filled with quiet confidence.

Aurora forced a polite smile. "Eleanor."

Eleanor returned it with effortless grace. "Aurora, I'm so glad you came. It wouldn't have been the same without you.

The words were warm, but something about them felt… off.

Aurora glanced at Cassian, searching for any hint of emotion on his face.

But he had already looked away.

And in that moment, Aurora knew—this wedding would be anything but simple.