Page 42 of Before I Say I Don’t

“Seriously, I’m good. I promise,” I reassured him.

“Just making sure.”

“Thank you,” I expressed quietly, my smile easing into something real. “For always making sure. And for… everything else.”

“Always, baby.”

For a moment, we just stood there, staring, like the space between us might collapse if either of us leaned even a fraction closer. The want was thick enough to touch.

I exhaled, forcing myself back to control. “Now go be charming before they start thinking we’re plotting.”

“We are plotting,” Roman reminded me, but obeyed; his eyes dragging over me one last time before he slipped back into the crowd, smooth as if nothing had happened at all, while my whole body still hummed from it.

I felt the new fault line Roman had just given me—the truth about Zaria—slotting into the map of my plan.

Another receipt. Another clean cut waiting for tomorrow’s light.

Back at the table, Danica slid into the chair beside me. “Everything beautiful?”

“Gorgeous,” I replied, eyes on Jayla and Kendall playing friendly at the mimosa tower. “Absolutely gorgeous.”

Diane appeared, beaming. “Kamira, darling, are we still doing the mother-son dance before the toasts tomorrow? I’ve been practicing.”

Danica whispered to me, “Practicing what? Possession?”

Serena covered a laugh with cough-cough decorum. “Water went down wrong.”

I smiled up at Diane. “We are. Same order we confirmed.”

What happened next took everyone by surprise—Jayla passed out.

The sound her body made when it hit the floor stole the room’s breath. Glasses rattled and someone yelped. Kendall was there first, knees to the stone and palms cupping Jayla’s cheeks, panic written all over her face.

Danica’s elbow nudged my ribs. “Face,” she murmured without breaking her smile. “Pretend to be the supportive best friend. Go.”

Reluctantly, I moved. I slid in on the other side, knees to the floor and fingers pressing at Jayla’s wrist.

“Hey, hey. Jayla,” I said calmly. “Open your eyes for me.”

“Somebody call 911!” Kendall’s voice cut sharp, jagged with fear. “She’s pregnant!”

Silence fell like a curtain.

Pregnant? That single word expanded, echoing in my chest until it filled every corner.

However, it wasn’t the pregnancy that punched my sternum; it was how the information entered the room, and how Kendall knew before me.

My gaze snapped up. “Pregnant?”

Kendall’s throat bobbed. “I—uh—I overheard her saying it earlier,” she stammered, too quickly.

Danica coughed into her fist, somehow fitting the word bullshit inside the sound.

Jayla’s lashes fluttered. Her eyes blinked open, late to the scene. “What… what happened?”

“You fainted,” I informed, thumb still at her pulse. “Probably low blood sugar.”

“Damn. For real?” She sat up with both Danica and I help, disoriented, then smoothing her hair like she’d just been caught slacking at work.

“Let’s give her air,” Danica announced, sweeping bodies back with two graceful flicks of her arms. “Diane,” she added, “Water… not cold… small sips.”

Jayla took the glass like a prop, nodded at the room like an understudy nailing composure.

I stood, dusted my knees, and felt the new fault line settle under my feet.

My phone buzzed in my palm.

Roman: I’m about to head out. But I’ll be in the car. Staying behind to see you one last time before you become Mrs. Grant tomorrow.

Me: Not funny. Lol.

Roman: Nah, but I do want to see you. Take your time.

The knot in my chest loosened, and I strolled toward Danica.

“Pregnant, though?” Danica murmured, saying exactly what I was about to as soon as I reached her.

“That part!” I shook my head in disbelief. “I guess that explains her throwing up that day… and her distance lately. This day is just full of surprises. Oh, I didn’t tell you that I also just found out Zaria is Angelo’s ex !”

Dancia’s mouth fell agape. “Whaaaaaaaaaat?!” she screeched, nearly dropping her cup. “Sis, get the hell outta here! How did you find out?!”

“Roman told me earlier. You know this is his first time seeing the entire wedding party.”

Danica scoffed. “Sis, this day isn’t full of surprises; shit is getting crazier by the day!”

“Right! Day by day, I’m finding out more shit.

Like, why the hell would you have one of your exes standing in our wedding?

I don’t give a damn how cool y’all are supposed to be!

And then her ass just rolling along like everything’s fine!

” My voice sharpened, teeth gritted. “Bitch, not only have you stood next to me knowing you and my fiancé had history, but you been smiling in my face like I’m dumb?

! It’s the secrets and the fuckin’ disrespect for me! ”

I was livid.

Danica’s mouth curled, but it wasn’t a smile.

“Sis… secrets don’t pop up like weeds unless somebody’s been planting.

And trust, Angelo’s got a whole damn garden he never invited you to.

” She tilted her head, eyes narrowing. “Every time you think you got the full picture, another little crack shows. That’s not love, that’s Jenga.

And you know how Jenga ends—tower’s coming down. ”

Her gaze flicked toward Jayla across the room, now sipping water like nothing had happened.

“And as for Little Miss Fainting Spell? She better hope she don’t trip tomorrow, because I’m not catching her ass.”

I burst out laughing, clutching my stomach. Danica always knew how to cut the tension with one-liners that sounded like they were pulled straight from a comedy set.

Me and Danica drifted toward our grandparents—the ones from our daddy’s side who had flown down for the wedding.

It still felt surreal seeing them there, smiling, hugging, acting like family when it had taken years to even get to that point.

As they asked us questions, their eyes carried that mixture of pride and regret—the pride of seeing their son’s daughters grow into strong women, and the regret of knowing he wasn’t there to witness it himself.

“I’m going to the bathroom,” I announced minutes later to Danica. “Be right back.”

“Text me a peach if you need me to yank a fire alarm.”

I chuckled, then slipped down the corridor toward the restrooms. Right before I made it the door, voices leaked through the seam—two… hushed… and familiar .

“I didn’t mean to blurt it,” Kendall was saying. “I panicked!”

“It’s cool,” Jayla sighed. “I just—what do you think Kam thinks? She heard I was pregnant, so why didn’t she say anything to me about it?”

I leaned my shoulder against the wall and let the cool tile hold me up.

“And why the fuck did your brother just stand there?” Jayla added angrily. “He hasn’t even asked me how I’m feeling!”

Why in the fuck would he? I wondered, my lips pressing tight to keep the thought from spilling out.

Then Kendall’s reply cut through the door, colder than ice.

“Jayla, you’re my girl, but pregnant with his child or not, you really thought my brother was gonna come to your rescue in front of Kam?

His fiancée? Be serious. Angelo loves that girl more than he probably ever loved me—and I’m his sister.

So what made you think you were the exception or ever on his list to protect? ”

My breath stalled. The hallway seemed to sway as my world tilted and my stomach flipped in on itself.

Jayla’s pregnant by Angelo?

The words clawed at me, wrapping tighter with every beat of silence.

Suddenly, every little thing clicked—the excuses, the half-smiles, the sudden distance, the way she’d been dipping out early like she had somewhere more important to be.

I didn’t need another excuse about missed periods, food poisoning, or how Jayla had been “under a lot of stress lately”.

It all makes sense now.

My fingers curled against the wall until my nails bit the paint, gripping harder as though the plaster could anchor me… but it didn’t.

“Damn… well say how you really feel?" Jayla urged, her voice tinged with hurt and disbelief. “I thought if anyone would have my back, it’d be you.”

Outside the bathroom, I smirked, shaking my head at how perfectly everything was playing out.

Jayla really thought she was owed loyalty?

From Kendall? Please. That girl couldn’t even stay loyal to her own wigs—always switching styles, never sticking to one, flaky as hell.

And now she expected someone to cape for her while she was pregnant by my fiancé?

The entitlement was louder than her common sense.

A trash can lid banged shut, followed by the sound of running water. It interrupted a moment of quiet, but Kendall's voice still broke through.

Kendall spoke again, softer but still scalpel-sharp.

“Listen, sis. I’ma keep it a buck with you—my brother isn’t about to change.

I tell females all the time that Angelo is two people…

charming and chaotic. You made a mistake trying to glue those halves together with a baby.

Carrying a man’s child doesn’t mean you’re carrying his hear t; that’s where a lot of y’all females mess up.

A baby doesn’t equal loyalty; it just makes a man somebody’s daddy.

I know my brother, girl. You’re banking on a man who can’t even bank his own damn secrets.

I wish I knew you before you got pregnant; I could’ve saved you from wasting your time, from mistaking attention for love, and building a dream on a man who ain’t even stable on his own two feet.

Because now… there’s a real chance you’re about to be a single mother.

Angelo’s not built for this the way you want him to be. ”

Good for her ass, I thought, stone-cold, the corner of my lip curling. She wanted the part, now let her live the script.

Jayla sniffled. “Shit wasn’t even that serious with us. It just… happened! A baby was never supposed to be in the plan.”