“You have no idea what you’re talking about.” Guy moved toward them, looking at Paul head-on. “But you want to play a game of chicken? Because if you want to call off the wedding, you can go up there and tell all one hundred of our guests that you’re not getting married anymore because you can’t wear your fancy little dress.”

“I’m not calling off the wedding,” Paul answered, head down and shoulders slouched. “I just have to get something else to wear tomorrow.”

Alex fumed inside, seeing up close a cycle that must have played out countless times in private. Paul became unrecognizable, and Guy pushed him to the brink of humiliation, over and over. That he was comfortable doing this in front of other people spoke volumes.

“There’s a menswear shop in town. You have plenty of options.” Guy’s eyes darted up to the terrace, where his parents were talking with friends along the stone railing. “Now, I’m going to take care of our guests. Why don’t you compose yourself, maybe drink some water, and we can finish the evening like adults?”

With that, he breezed past them and walked out of the gate, adjusting the cuffs of his sleeves and his collar as he moved. Alex turned to Paul, whose face was ashen but stoic, blinking hard and looking straight out at the sea.

“Hey, are you okay?” she asked, reaching for his hand between them.

“I’m fine.” He cleared his throat, smoothing out the front of his tunic with his free hand. “I’ll be fine. Can we go to your room, though? I want to splash some cold water on my face.”

“Of course,” she said, wanting to ask a million other questions but afraid to upset him further. “And like I said, if I can do anything for you, you just say the word, okay? We can do whatever we need to.”

“Yep,” he answered in an eerily calm voice. “I appreciate that.”

Alex pushed open the door of her suite, ushering Paul in first and flicking on the light switch before kicking off her heels. Only once he was securely in the bathroom, the running faucet providing a little auditory privacy, did she realize her hands were still shaking. She walked to her nightstand and cracked open the large bottle of still water, willing herself to calm down as she poured them each a glass.