Chapter163: Unwanted Celebration

|| Lilac’s POV || The air was thick with the cloying scent of roses and champagne, the garden now transformed into a grotesque parody of celebration. Everywhere I turned, someone was raising a glass—to Ezra, to Elias, to me—their smiles too wide, their congratulations too loud. "Such a perfect match!" "The Goddess truly blessed you both!" I wanted to scream. Instead, I forced a smile so brittle I feared my cheeks would crack, accepting their hollow words with a grace I didn’t feel. Elias watched me from across the terrace, his blue eyes burning with something between triumph and suspicion. Congratulations, mate. You’ve successfully trapped me in a farce. I drained my wine in one gulp and turned away. "Lilac!" Elara’s voice was a lifeline. She crashed into me, her arms wrapping around my shoulders in a hug that smelled like vanilla and steel. Astrid followed, her sharp green eyes scanning my face with the precision of a strategist assessing a battlefield. "How are you?" Astrid asked, th