It was your wedding day — a day you’d imagined so many times before, now finally here. You stood in your room, taking in your reflection. The dress was perfect, hugging you in all the right ways, the intricate lace catching the soft light. Your hair was done just how you’d envisioned, and your smile was radiant, though tinged with nervous energy. You had asked the bridesmaids to leave you alone for a moment, needing the quiet to steady your thoughts and take it all in.

But the stillness didn’t last long. A knock at the door pulled you from your thoughts. Expecting someone from the wedding staff, you moved to answer it, smoothing the front of your dress as you turned the knob.

And then you saw him.

Carlos.

He was leaning against the doorframe, his dark eyes fixed on you with an intensity that made your stomach flip. The world seemed to tilt, the air growing heavier. Carlos Sainz. Your ex — the man who had walked away, claiming his career was his only priority. Yet here he was, on the day you were meant to marry someone else. The one man who had always made you question everything, including your love for Barney, the groom waiting for you downstairs.

“Don’t marry him!” Carlos said, his voice firm but filled with something raw as he stepped into the room without waiting for an invitation.