Chapter 12 - The Wedding That Never Happened
Vanessa had been six weeks from becoming my wife.
The venue was booked.
The guest list was nearly done.
Her dress had already been fitted twice.
When I canceled the wedding, I did not do it quietly.
I sent one message to every guest and vendor through my attorney.
The wedding is canceled. Vanessa Hale and Margaret Hale are no longer welcome in my home or near my daughter. Please direct all refunds and documentation to counsel.
Vanessa called me sixteen times in one afternoon.
I answered once.
“You’re ruining my life,” she said.
I looked at Lily, who was asleep on the sofa in my lawyer’s office wrapped in a blanket because she still wouldn’t nap if she thought I might leave the room.
Then I said, “No. I’m stopping you from ruining hers.”
Vanessa started crying.
Real tears, probably.
Manipulative tears, definitely.
“You know my mother pushed me into this.”
I said nothing.
“She said we’d be secure. She said Lily would always come between us. She said—”
“You agreed.”
Silence.
Then a much colder voice answered me.
“Yes,” she said. “I did.”
May you like
That was the last honest thing Vanessa ever said to me.
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