All Chapters of The Deal in a Wedding Dress: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

—Celeste—I couldn't sleep. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Evelyn's face when she'd spotted Aria—the shock, the calculation, the vindictive satisfaction as the pieces fell into place. She knew. She knew everything now, and she had the power to destroy the life I'd spent five years building.I sat at my kitchen table until three in the morning, staring at my cold coffee and running through scenarios in my head. Each one ended the same way—with Killian learning the truth, with lawyers and custody battles, with Aria's innocent world torn apart by adults who couldn't figure out how to love without causing damage.Unless.The idea came to me sometime around dawn, dark and desperate but potentially effective. Evelyn Sinclair had always been driven by one thing above all others—her obsession with Killian Hart. She'd waited fifteen years for him to notice her as more than a family friend, had positioned herself as the perfect wife material, had built her entire identity around becoming Mr

CelesteThe fluorescent lights of St. Catherine's Hospital burned my eyes. I sat rigid in a plastic chair, still wearing my blood-red gala gown that now felt obscene—all that silk and elegance in a place where people fought for their lives.My mother was behind those ICU doors. Tubes and machines keeping her alive because her heart had given up under the weight of stress we'd tried so hard to shield her from."The doctors say it was a severe cardiac episode." Dad's voice cracked as he spoke, his hands trembling around a paper coffee cup. He looked ancient in the harsh light, every line in his face carved deeper by exhaustion and fear. "Her condition's been deteriorating for months. We didn't want to worry you."The words hit like physical blows. "What do you mean, months?""The medication wasn't working anymore. New symptoms kept appearing." He couldn't meet my eyes. "We thought we had more time. Thought if we just made it through this year, once we had the money from Hart's settlemen

CelesteI was leaving Mom's room, exhausted from three hours of reading to her and pretending everything was fine, when I collided with someone in the hallway."Oh—I'm so sorry—""No harm done." The voice was smooth, familiar. My stomach dropped.Evelyn Chase stood before me, looking like she'd stepped out of a magazine spread. Cream silk blouse, tailored black pants, not a hair out of place despite it being nearly eight in the evening. In her arms, an enormous bouquet of white orchids—the expensive kind that came from exclusive florists."Celeste." Her smile didn't reach her eyes. "What a coincidence."It wasn't a coincidence. Nothing about this woman felt accidental."Evelyn." I straightened my shoulders, suddenly aware of my wrinkled jeans and the coffee stain on my sweater. "What are you doing here?""Visiting a friend." She adjusted the orchids delicately. "Though I heard your mother was admitted. How difficult this must be for you."The concern in her voice was as fake as her su

CelesteSleep was impossible. I'd tried for two hours, tossing in sheets that felt too hot, too confining, replaying that moment in the driveway over and over until my mind felt raw.You're mine for the next ten months.I gave up at midnight, pulling on a robe and padding downstairs barefoot. Tea. Maybe tea would help, even though I knew nothing could settle the restless energy humming under my skin.The kitchen was dark except for moonlight streaming through the windows. I reached for the light switch and froze.Killian sat at the island, a tumbler of scotch in his hand, wearing nothing but pajama pants slung low on his hips. His bare chest gleamed in the silver light—all lean muscle and smooth skin that made my mouth go dry.He looked up at me, and something flashed in his eyes before he looked away."Can't sleep either?" His voice was rough, tired."No." I moved to the kettle, hyperaware of every sound I made. The water running. The click of the burner. My own unsteady breathing.T

Celeste"You're married, not dead," Sarah said over the phone, her voice brooking no argument. "One drink. That's all I'm asking. You need to get out of that mansion before you turn into a ghost."I stared at my reflection in the bedroom mirror. She wasn't wrong—I looked hollow, like I was fading into the expensive wallpaper."I don't know—""Celeste Andrews Hart, I've been your best friend since freshman year. I know when you're drowning. One drink. Please."So I said yes.The lounge was upscale but not pretentious—soft lighting, good music, the kind of place where you could actually hear yourself think. Sarah was already there, waving from a corner booth, her smile bright and familiar and everything I'd been missing."There she is!" She pulled me into a hug that smelled like her signature perfume. "God, I've missed you. Tell me everything. And I mean everything."I slid into the booth, accepting the wine she'd already ordered. "There's nothing to tell.""Liar. You married a billiona