The music swirled around them in a chaotic blend of rhythms while guests moved energetically across the floor, dancing and enjoying their evening drinks.

Sophia had to admit that her father possessed a remarkable group of friends, even if some of them bordered on complete eccentrics.

The wedding guest list continued to swell daily, thanks in part to contributions from Maya and herself.

Yet her main worry at the moment had nothing to do with the expanding crowd. Instead, it centered on her father, who looked as though he was sinking beneath a wave of anxiety.

A damsel in distress—what was the male equivalent of that term? She wasn’t entirely...