ISABELLA
The day before the wedding felt like a secret pressing against my ribs.
Every breath reminded me that tomorrow, everything would change.
But only Adrian, Tobias, and I carried the truth.
So when Adrian’s mother invited us to lunch at La Sirena Blu, I had to pretend everything was normal. Pretend the wedding was still months away. Pretend I wasn’t walking into a room full of people who loved him and expected a long engagement.
La Sirena Blu was buzzing when we arrived — a glamorous storm of clinking glasses, polished marble floors, and waiters weaving through the crowd with trays of champagne and seafood. The lunch rush was loud, chaotic, and elegant all at once.
Adrian’s hand rested on the small of my back as we walked in.
A subtle touch.
A grounding one.
His mother spot
