Page 9 of Christmas Promises
“I’ve got time.”
Their beers arrived then, giving Laney a moment to organize her thoughts. She took a sip first before answering his question. “I was supposed to get married the day after Thanksgiving, but I called off the wedding. At the last minute. The very last minute. I’m supposed to be sipping red wine in Paris right now.”
“Did you get cold feet?”
“No. Cold is not the way I’d describe what I was feeling that day.” She took another sip of beer, gathering courage to tell him what had happened. “I was in my wedding dress, moments away from the ceremony. My dad was all set to walk me down the aisle. Most of the guests had arrived. And then I saw some texts. Between Josh and my best friend, confessing their undying love for each other. I didn’t know, obviously.”
“Laney, that’s awful. It’s like a bad dream.”
“Only it was real. Looking back, I should have seen the signs.”
“It’s not in your nature to be suspicious.”
How had he remembered that? Was it possible he’d thought of her as often as she’d thought of him? “That’s right. Obviously. Because once I knew, I started remembering little details, and it all came together.”
“So, you called it off, right then and there?” Nolan asked.
“Pretty much. My dad paid for a wedding that never happened. Another thing to add to my list of guilt and shame.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say. Have you talked to either of them?”
“I confronted Josh before the ceremony. I haven’t yet talked to Dahlia. I doubt I will.” She chuckled, a bitter, sour sound at the back of her throat. “He had the gall to ask if he could take her on the honeymoon. Since he’d paid for it already, well, his parents had paid for it. A wedding gift. Now they’re enjoying my dream destination together.”
“Unbelievable. I’m enraged on your behalf.”
“Aunt Edna was there for the wedding, and she suggested I come here until I decide what I want to do. I gave up all my clients before the wedding. I was moving to Boston to live with him. I’ve been in New York City since I graduated from college. He didn’t think I should keep my business after we married.”
“Why not?”
Laney closed her eyes, remembering the discussion. Or, rather, the argument. “He’s wealthy. Family money. The women in his family spend their time doing charity work and planning parties. That’s what I was supposed to do too. Plus, have babies.”
“Is that what you wanted?”
“I thought so. It seemed right. All of it. Including him. But now, I’m not so sure it was what I wanted at all. Maybe I just thought I was supposed to want him and everything that came with him.”
“How did you meet him?”
“We run in the same social circles. Our parents are friends. Country club and all that.”
“Which makes it even worse?”
“That’s right. I just needed to get away from the whole scene. Everyone in that world was at the wedding. It’s completely humiliating. My poor dad had to tell the guests the wedding was off.”
“Coming here was a good idea. No one knows you here. You can start fresh. Well, almost nobody knows you. I know you.” Nolan smiled, cocking his head to the left. “Although I didn’t expect to see you again.”
“I’ve thought about you over the years. I even asked Aunt Edna about you occasionally.” Laney could feel the blush moving up her neck and into her cheeks. But she’d gone this far, admitting to the sweet crush she’d never totally forgotten. “I have fond memories of that summer we spent together.”
“One of the sweetest summers of my life. Maybethesweetest.”
She couldn’t look away from his soulful eyes. “We were such innocents.”
“Yeah. Which made it all the sweeter.”
“What about you?” Laney asked. “Do you have a girlfriend?”
His expression darkened. “Strangely enough. I have a broken engagement in my past too. Three years ago, now. Although she broke it off before the actual wedding, so it wasn’t quite as bad. But I ran into her a few days ago. She’s married and having a baby. Like your situation, she’d fallen in love with someone else. Not my best friend. That would be impossible, since he’s dead.”
“Are you talking about Dylan?” Laney asked, concerned. She remembered Dylan quite well. He’d been funny and kind.
