Page 9 of Neptune

God, this man is indeed crazy. Why did I even question that?

Silence falls for a while before I speak again.

"I don't mind having a small wedding," I let him know. "Without too many guests, just some close friends—"

He cuts me off with his annoying scoff.

"Not going to happen," he says. "I want it to be the biggest wedding this year, one that will make the world explode, one that will make each and every person walking on this planet know that we're married."

Right. I almost forgot that he wants to make his parents have a heart attack.

"But it's impossible to execute such a grand wedding in just a month of preparation," I argue, trying to knock some sense into his head.

"Why should we worry about that?" he retorts. "As far as I remember, we won’t be the ones who should worry about that."

I stare at him in disbelief, but at the same time, I know that he's right.

He can make it happen without even having to lift a finger.

???

"What about Harry?" Peter asks.

The day after I told Luke that I was going to marry him, another emergency meeting is held at my house.

My team has gathered again, minus Morgan.

"Yes, put him on the list," I answer Peter, who's handling the guestlist for my wedding reception.

He adds Harry Styles and sighs. There's still a long list of potential guests to go through, most of whom are my friends in the music industry.

Since Luke made Astalis Records fire Morgan, I don't answer her calls nor do I allow her to come to my house anymore.

I need to do this for a while to compose myself, and she needs to get out of my professional life to clear her mind and to realize all of her mistakes.

I've made up my mind, and if she barges into my life now, I know that she'll fuck with my head again.

I watch the rest of my team, who look like they're in a disaster. Oscar is talking non-stop on the phone. Paul focuses on Peter's laptop, browsing through the venue options for the reception—I find it funny when he shakes his head, nods and speaks to himself .

Mike, however, fumes as he sits in the corner of the room. He still has a problem with Luke after Luke kicked him out of his office twice.

Mike still can't believe that I've agreed to marry Luke.

"The Biebers?" Peter's voice shifts my attention back.

"Of course," I answer without looking at him, lying back on the couch as I look out of the window. "I love them."

He puts another checkmark on the paper. "What about Selena?"

The question makes me snap my head toward him.

"Is that even a question?" I ask him in disbelief. "Yes. Hell yes. Peter, she should be at the top of the list," I shout.

Peter looks at me with doubt. "You know, if you invite the Biebers, it might not be a good idea to invite her over—"

"For God's sake, Peter." I roll my eyes. "She moved on a long time ago. I don't care. I'm not going to choose one of them."

Peter puts his pen under his chin, thinking, but then he nods in understanding. I sigh.

Paul squeals in delight as he finds something that might be the perfect wedding venue. He snaps his head toward me, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

It's funny that he was skeptical at first regarding the wedding, but once he starts digging into the venue options, he turns into a kid who just found Santa Claus.

"Cassie, since we don't have much time, I suggest that we have the wedding here, in LA.

And the Beverly Hills Hotel has this beautiful Crystal Garden—"

"I'll go with anything you choose, Paul." I smile, knowing the place that Paul has just talked about. It's one of the glitzy venues chosen by celebrities for their weddings.

Paul smiles at me sadly as I show little interest in my wedding. Well, it's not like I'm going to marry the man that I love.

I stare at the diamond ring on my finger, the ring that Luke has given me, the one I'll show to the world as my engagement ring. It's breathtaking, crafted in solid white gold, with a round-shaped blue diamond set into a gorgeous floral basket setting of little white diamonds.

It's ironic because blue is my favorite color, and now I have this stunning blue diamond as my engagement ring.

But no matter how beautiful it is, I'd rather wear a cheap ring gifted by the man I love than an expensive one given by a stranger.

"I just can't wait until you try the wedding dress." Paul still can't hide his excitement as he shifts his attention back to the laptop.

More days pass, and just like I expected the news of my engagement with Luke causes an uproar in the world. And just like Luke said, before that happens, the clarifications regarding all the misunderstandings of my previous relationships break the headlines.

I'm proven innocent, definitely not a homewrecker. Thank God.

The person who suffers the most is Brian Russel, who is proved to have assaulted me in public and cheated on his wife.

My relationship problems with Jude remain private, and I'm grateful for that. I'm grateful that Luke listened to me in the end even though I wonder why.

Anybody can tell that he's a person who wouldn't negotiate, but strangely, he has proven to me more than once that it's not entirely true. Maybe he has realized that attacking my superstar ex-boyfriend isn't the best idea before our wedding.

Now that I think about that, anything can happen within this month. Anything can prevent this wedding from happening.

Our engagement news must have reached his parents and former fiancée too. I wonder what they think about that—they might be furious as hell.

I just hope that I won't find any mad woman storming toward the altar on our wedding day.