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Neither one of us uttered a word to each other until we reached the banquet hall. It felt like our first day here all over again. I hated it. Things were supposed to be getting better between us, this feels the complete opposite. It bothered me now much more than how much it bothered me when we first came to Marbella. Genuinely, it made me feel like shit, I felt horrible. Guilty, frustrated, angry, even a little sad.

I wanted Emilia and I to work things out for good, I wanted to be a part of her life again, I didn't want to lose her again. I couldn't.

She's always meant a lot to me, but why now? Now, why does it feel like my whole world will fall apart without her in it?

Now that I've met her again, I couldn't imagine not having her in my life after this. Even though we've been arguing a lot on this trip, I just don't want to lose her. The thought gnaws at me. I was so close, we were so close to figuring it all out but now it's all messed up again. I don't know if I did or said something wrong or if she just overreacted but whatever it is, we have to talk it out.

"Oh, thank God, you're here," Remy sighed, seeming nervous as she rushed over, quickly throwing her arms around Emilia. Emilia cracked a genuine smile, giving Remy a quick squeeze while I made my way over to Aspen who seemed like he was shitting bricks too.

"Oh, you're here too. Good, that's good. Once the others are here, that'll be good too," he mumbled while nodding.

"Why the hell are you so nervous? You're already engaged to her, you do know that... right?"

"Shut up, man. It's not the same. This is a big deal, this is in front of everybody."

I lifted a brow, "Wasn't it in front of people the first time?"

"No," he scoffed. "She came to my apartment to stay the night. I mean, she does that most nights. But we were alone. I wasn't this nervous, I knew she loved me enough to say yes."

"And now she doesn't?"

He glared at me. "Of course she does."

"Then relax, Aspen. This isn't about all the people watching, man. It's about you and Remy. Everyone else watching should just..." I opened my hands, gesturing towards the entire banquet hall. "Disappear," I whispered in a sing-song voice before a laugh escaped me.

He huffed, smacking my arm while I chuckled softly, grabbing his shoulder.

"Calm down, my guy. Everything will be okay. She still loves you. I think, at least."

"Fuck you," he exhaled, pinching the bridge of his nose. "The others should be here any minute, right?"

I nodded. "Sure."

"Then maybe I— Actually, no. Let's not talk about this. It's not helping the nerves. Let's uh... let's talk about you. You and Em."

"No," I said immediately, looking away from him and checking out the decorations in the small banquet hall.

"Yes. I mean, you are sharing a room now, so how's it going?"

"Fine. It was until today, I guess."

"What happened?"

"We kind of had a fight."

"Why?"

My eyes narrowed a sliver at him. "Why don't you worry about your engagement, brother? Look, here they come, everybody's here." I slipped away from him and the others while they met Remy and Aspen, congratulating them early and whatnot.

The plan was that after about an hour of drinks and some snacks, Remy and Aspen would get officially engaged and exchange their rings, and then some more drinks and snacks and dancing, and then we'd have a late-night dinner here itself. So everybody split up. Some went to the stand-up bar to get some drinks, some people sat at the round tables and talked, and some people took pictures.

With nothing to do, I figured I'd get a drink, so I went to the bar and told the bartender to get me a whiskey on the rocks. My eyes landed on the entrance as I took the drink and I spotted Brett making his way inside. The urge to roll my eyes was almost immediate.

I stayed at the bar and watched as he greeted Aspen and Remy first, congratulating them, then he greeted Mr. and Mrs. Feye along with my own parents, he greeted all the grandparents here too, but the aunts and uncles he only greeted if he ran into them. From the looks of it, he was searching for someone in the crowd and I'm sure we all know who it is.

It's the girl walking over to me right now. She glanced at me and then stopped beside me, facing the bartender while I faced the room. "Can I get a mojito, please?"

"I thought you didn't like mojitos," I said, turning to her.

"I've always liked mojitos, maybe you've forgotten," she replied in confusion.

"You threw your first one away."

"Yeah, because you make one horrible mojito. And alcohol doesn't actually taste good when you're underage. You just... drink it," she shrugged, watching the bartender as he made her drink.

"Emilia."

She spun around, pulling a smile onto her face. "Hey, Brett."

"Are you getting a drink?"

"Yeah. Do you want one?"

"I don't really drink a lot. I've already had my share in the last couple of days, so I'm going to take tonight off."

She shrugged. "But tonight's the best night. The engagement party is when everybody gets wonderfully hammered. Your loss."

He chuckled, "I suppose it is. By the way, you look gorgeous."

I rolled my eyes, downing the rest of my drink before my eyes met the bartender's. "Another one," I mumbled, sliding the glass back over. He eyed the glass and then glanced at Emilia before pouring me another drink. I took a sip and then put it down. If I drink too much too fast, I tend to get too drunk to function. Bad idea when I'm sharing a room with Emmy.

"Thanks, you look really handsome too," she replied. I don't care how forced it sounded, she said it. She didn't say it to me. I sighed, taking a bigger sip.

"I was hoping you'd say that," he flirted.

Are you kidding me?

I tilted my head back, letting the whiskey pour down my throat, leaving a burning sensation behind before I slid the glass back over. "One more." He lifted his brows but started preparing another drink.

"Em, there you are," Emma said, joining us.

Oh, thank God.

I took the third glass but didn't take a sip. I glanced over and saw both Emma and Ava there. While Emma compliments Emmy's dress, Ava glanced between her and Brett. "Oh hey, Brett, your tie matches her dress," Ava pointed out.

Emma looked at the tie then at me. I took a big sip, the ice clinking in the glass. "What are you talking about? No, it doesn't," Emma scoffed. "His tie is like... blue-ish green, her dress is emerald green. You don't know anything, Ava. Come on." She grabbed Ava's arm, taking her away.

"Oh, I think they're starting the proper engagement. We should probably go there," Brett said, glancing over at the others.

"Yeah, I'll be there in a second, you go ahead," Emilia replied. She turned to me while I tipped the glass back but before I could finish the drink, she snatched the glass away from me.

I rolled my eyes, turning to her and taking my glass back. "What?" I asked, lifting a brow.

"Stop drinking the night away. And don't be so immature."

"I'm the one being immature? You're the one who isn't even talking to me because we had a little argument."

"Adam, it was a small argument, don't make it a big deal. I... panicked. Okay? I panicked. I forgot what it's like to be around you all the time. It felt strange, that's it. Come on, we should head over there." I finished the drink anyway before leaving the glass on the counter and she hissed, grabbing my arm. "Adam!"

I sighed and let her pull me towards the others.

Everybody was gathered in a huge circle around Aspen and Remy who were standing while both my parents and Emilia's stood with their own kids, Mrs. Feye and my mom holding the ring boxes. They exchanged rings and a kiss while everybody watching applauded and then eventually eased back into the room while this time, the music playing increased in volume.

A few people started to dance, including Remy and Aspen while Emilia and I now stood off to the side of the room, her leaning on the left of a pillar while I leaned on the right.

I glanced at her and saw that she was watching Brett who was talking to Aunt Janice. "Do you like him?"

She snapped out of her daze and turned to me. "What? Who?"

"Who do you think? Brett, of course."

She frowned in confusion, "Why would you think I like him? I don't, Adam. I'm just looking at him. I find it almost weird that he's able to smooth talk his way into and out of anything."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean it's almost like there's nothing wrong with him. He's too perfect, you know?"

I blinked in confusion. "No? I don't know. He's an airhead, Emilia. He talks like he knows everything when it's really obvious that he doesn't. He thinks everything will always go his way."

"Like what?"

"Like you."

She waited for me to continue.

"He flirts with you all the time and he's so fucking arrogant about it. As if he knows it for a fact that Emilia Feye can never fall for any man unless it's him. He's an arrogant prick."

"So are you."

"Maybe, but not like him."

"Of course not like him. You're you. I know you."

I held her gaze until she looked away. When I realized Brett was coming this way again, probably to ask her to dance, I knew I had to beat him to it. Before he could get here, I grabbed her hand and pulled her behind the tables and around so we could reach the dance floor without running into him.

"Where are you taking me?" she asked, walking with me anyway.

"To dance." I stopped on the dance floor, facing her. "Dance with me, Emilia."

"What?"

I grabbed her waist, pulling her flush against me and she blinked in surprise, holding my gaze. "I said dance with me."

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