Chapter 14: I Had Already Chosen Myself

The morning after the confrontation, I woke up before sunrise.

For a few seconds, I lay still, staring at the ceiling, listening to the quiet house.

Then I remembered everything.

Camden.

Pepper.

The wedding.

The lies.

The years I'd wasted believing that if I loved someone hard enough, they would eventually choose me.

I turned my head.

Beck was asleep beside me, one arm resting loosely across the pillow where I'd been lying.

He looked peaceful.

Safe.

Nothing like the chaos I'd spent years calling love.

My phone vibrated on the nightstand.

I reached for it.

There were dozens of notifications.

Camden had posted again.

I didn't want to look.

I did anyway.

His face filled the screen. He looked exhausted, angry, and desperate.

The caption was long.

Too long.

He claimed he'd made mistakes.

He claimed Pepper had manipulated him.

He claimed he'd only married her because of the baby.

And then came the sentence that made my stomach turn.

"Rowan was always the woman I wanted."

I stared at the screen.

Then I laughed.

Not because it was funny.

Because it was unbelievable.

After everything he'd done, he still thought he could rewrite the story.

A message appeared from an unknown number.

"Camden: Please. Just talk to me once."

Another arrived.

"Camden: I know I don't deserve you."

Then another.

"Camden: I made the biggest mistake of my life."

I locked my phone.

Beck stirred beside me.

"Everything okay?"

I looked at him.

For once, I didn't feel like hiding anything.

"Camden is trying to come back."

Beck was silent for a moment.

Then he asked softly, "Do you want him back?"

I shook my head.

"No."

The answer came so easily that it surprised me.

Beck smiled faintly.

"Then that's all that matters."

I reached for his hand.

His fingers closed around mine.

Outside, the first light of morning began spilling through the curtains.

For the first time in years, I wasn't waiting for someone to choose me.

I had already chosen myself.

And I had chosen Beck.

Later that afternoon, my mother called.

I almost ignored it.

Almost.

Instead, I answered.

Her voice was trembling.

"Rowan..."

I said nothing.

"Your sister's marriage is falling apart."

I closed my eyes.

"I know."

"Pepper is furious with Camden. She's threatening to leave with the baby."

I remained silent.

My mother took a shaky breath.

"Your father thinks you should come home. We need to talk as a family."

I smiled bitterly.

"Family?"

There was silence on the other end.

"Mom, you stopped treating me like family a long time ago."

"That's not fair."

The words made something inside me go completely still.

"Fair?"

I repeated the word.

"You gave my fiancé to my stepsister. You watched her take my father's ring. You watched her destroy my wedding. And every time I was hurt, you told me to understand her."

My voice didn't shake anymore.

"I'm done understanding."

"Rowan, please."

She started crying.

For the first time, I didn't rush to comfort her.

"I hope you all find what you're looking for."

Then I ended the call.

Beck came into the room a few minutes later.

He didn't ask what happened.

He simply wrapped his arms around me.

I rested my head against his chest.

There were no fireworks.

No dramatic music.

Just peace.

And somehow, that was better than everything I'd once dreamed of.

That evening, we finalized our wedding plans.

Not because we needed to prove anything to Camden.

Not because we wanted revenge.

But because we loved each other.

And in ten days, I would finally walk down the aisle toward the man who had been waiting for me all along.