The Groom's Second Promise
Chapter 04 - The Groom's Second Promise
Daniel found me in the east corridor just after midnight. Most guests had gone home. A cleaning crew was washing chocolate from the marble, and the chandelier lights reflected in the wet floor.
"Audrey." He looked genuinely wrecked. His tie hung loose, and he had removed his jacket. "Please tell me we can talk."
"You had months."
"Celeste was jealous. You know how she gets."
"I heard your voice."
He closed his eyes. "That clip is out of context."
"Then give me the context."
He leaned against the wall. "I've been trying to secure a development partnership. Your property needs money. We could both benefit."
"So you planned to sell it?"
"Not exactly. The buyers wanted an option."
"And what did they want you to do if I said no?"
He wouldn't meet my eyes.
I waited. I wanted him to deny it. I wanted him to tell me there was some explanation for why my best friend had humiliated me while he maneuvered documents onto a table beside wedding champagne.
Instead, he whispered, "You always let your mother make your decisions."
I stepped back. "She helped me protect my father's work."
"That place is rotting."
The words hit harder than I expected. The conservatory had been my father's pride, his last gift, the room where he'd taught me to play piano while the rain struck the glass roof. Daniel had called it beautiful during our first date.
"Did you ever love me?" I asked.
His expression changed. For a second I saw grief, and perhaps shame. Then his jaw tightened.
"I was trying to give us a better life."
"That's not an answer."
He looked past me toward the windows. "I thought I could make you see reason after the wedding."
"You thought I'd have no way out."
He said nothing.
I removed my engagement ring and placed it on the windowsill between us.
"Go home, Daniel."
He stared at it. "Audrey—"
"Please."
I expected him to argue. Instead, he took the ring, slipped it into his pocket, and left.
May you like
Only later did I learn that he drove directly to Celeste's apartment.
Only later did I understand that the ruined wedding had been less of a sudden betrayal than the collapse of a plan they'd been refining for months.
