Page 32 of The Replacement Fiance

I can feel Logan's intense gaze but I don't look at him. How can I when everything is falling apart and there's no more saving whatever we once had? Better that things end this way between us than prolong it.

"I'm confused," Mom says. "Are you or aren't you engaged, Mariah? And if you are, to whom?"

"I'm not engaged to anyone, Mom. Not to Cooper and not to Logan," I reply, fighting back the tears of shame. "I'm sorry for lying to everyone but when you told me that Elliot and Minerva were coming home for Christmas, I panicked."

"How can you panic?" Emily asks. "It's been two years."

"I just panicked, alright?" I say. "I didn't want him and Minerva to see that I was still alone two years after what happened. I mean, three weeks before the wedding? Who does that? And for crying out loud, all the wedding dinnerware and silverware are still up in the attic, every single one with our names on it."

I pause, the meaning behind my words hitting me hard. I look at Logan, realizing how right he was earlier. Iamstuck in the past. I didn't just use it as armor. I lived it, breathed it, and pushed everyone away with it.

"Oh, honey," Mom says. "We gave all the wedding stuff away a long time ago. There was no sense in holding on to them."

"So none of it was true?" Dad looks at Logan. "The things you said about my daughter, it was all made up?"

"No, sir, it wasn't," Logan says. "I meant what I said about how I felt about your daughter."

A truck approaching the driveway catches Dad's attention and he peers out the window.

"Who is this now? Is there a third guy that I need to know about?" he asks when the truck stops and a tall man wearing a baseball cap emerges and makes his way toward the house.

"That would be my friend Chad," Logan replies, opening the door. "He moved up here a few months ago."

Amid all the hi's and hello's, I hurry upstairs, not wanting to face anyone for a while. What else can I say that hasn't been said? I messed up. Bad.

I hear a knock on the door and before I can tell whoever it is to leave me alone, Emily pushes open the door and steps inside.

"Mariah, I had no idea you were still hurt by what happened," she says softly.

"There were three hundred people invited to the wedding," I say. "Half the town alone knew what happened."

"You do know we can't stop Elliot and Minerva from spending Christmas with his parents," she says. "I just never thought you'd..."

"Spare me the lecture, Emily, okay? I don't have time for that right now."

She sighs and takes a step toward me but I bring my hand up, not wanting her to come closer. Everything feels too raw and the last thing I need is Emily's pity. Or anyone else's, for that matter.

The tears finally come down the moment I'm alone in my room. I always told myself to be ready for the moment things would go wrong but not like this, not with Cooper and Logan in the same room and my lie falling apart the way it did. Talk about a big reveal.

How can Mom and Dad trust me now?

The door opens and Logan steps inside.

"I'm sorry for the way things fell apart," I whisper. "You should just leave and have fun with your friends for a change."

Logan doesn't say anything. He takes three steps toward me and gathers me in his strong arms. That's when I really fall apart, the tears flowing even harder as I sob against his chest.

"You did what you thought was best. I get that," he murmurs. "But sometimes, even with the best of intentions, some things just don't work out the way we want them to."

"I'm sorry."

He lets go of me and steps back. "Mariah, I'm going to leave."

"Okay."

"Chad's going to drive me back to LA."

I nod, his words sounding distant. "I understand."

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