جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 254

Cassandra’s POVThe morning of my wedding felt unreal in the quietest way. Not the kind of unreal that came with panic and chaos and guards dragging people through corridors. Not the kind that tasted like fear. This was softer. Like I’d woken up inside a life I used to imagine in secret and then punished myself for imagining because the palace had taught me hope was a dangerous thing.The room was calm. No rush of palace maids yelling schedules. No court women hovering with fake smiles. No press outside the gates waiting to capture a scandal. No Ivana storming in with sharp words and sharper eyes. Just my dress hanging neatly by the wardrobe, and Diana moving around me with gentle efficiency, like she was handling something delicate that could shatter if she breathed too hard.The wedding was quiet and private. Arden had insisted. He didn’t want the court. He didn’t want the palace to swallow our moment and turn it into a performance for hungry people and gossiping ministers. He didn’

Cassandra’s POVArden pulled me into his arms so fast I squeaked, and he lifted me slightly off the floor like he needed to confirm I was real.“Oh my God,” he murmured against my hair. “Oh my God.”His grip was careful, protective, not crushing, but fierce. I clung to him, tears spilling. For years, pregnancy had been my heartbreak. Now it felt like a miracle.Arden pulled back, cupped my face, and kissed me.Not slow this time.Desperate.Grateful.Like he’d been starving too.He kissed my cheeks, my forehead, my lips again.“I can’t believe it,” he whispered. “I can’t, Cassy,”I laughed softly, wiping my tears.“I didn’t believe it either. I tested twice.”Arden’s eyes looked wet, and seeing that nearly destroyed me.“This is… this is ours,” he whispered.I nodded, breath trembling.“Yes.”Arden’s hands rested on my waist, then slid gently to my belly like he was afraid to touch, afraid to jinx it. He looked at me like I was sacred.“We’re celebrating,” he murmured, voice low.I smi