“Shouldn’t you get back to your bride now?” Emmett asked him, in a voice that was soft but incredibly sharp.

Nicholas muttered something and hurried off while the rest of the guests watched him with a newfound pity.

The rest of the evening was a complete reversal of power, as the waiters began bringing the finest champagne and desserts to Table Nineteen.

People who’d ignored me for years suddenly found reasons to walk past our corner and offer me their business cards.

Emmett and I spent the next two hours discussing the memoir he wanted me to write, and his wish to keep the narrative authentic and human.

“Don’t let the marketing team turn your life into a corporate brand,” I advised him.

“That’s exactly why you’re the only one I trust to do this,” he replied, as Parker asked him to add more fire to the dragon’s mouth.

Eventually the ceremony wound down, and I could see that Nicholas’s confidence had been completely shattered.

When it was time for Emmett to leave, he stood up and said he wanted to discuss the new book contract right away.