Page 8 of The Marriage Negotiation

"Who is it, Dad?"

"He says his name is Patrick Scotton. He's Peter's brother."

"Peter's brother?"

My eyebrows pulled together when I heard that soft spoken voice. I'd heard it before, but it had been a very long time. Still, I had never forgotten the sweet sound that had haunted my dreams for years.

I stepped up to the doorway and pressed a hand to my chest when I caught my first glance at the man I'd come to see. My heart slammed against my ribs so hard it was painful. He wasjust as beautiful now as he had been when we were in high school.

And he was engaged to my idiot brother.

Maybe.

"I only need a few minutes of your time."

The groom nodded. When his father stepped out of the way, I walked into the room and then turned to shut the door behind me. I wanted this conversation to be in private.

"Do you know where Peter is?"

I shook my head. "That's what I came to talk to you about."

The man's shoulders slumped.

"Zaq, right?" I knew it was his name. I just wasn't sure I wanted him to know that I remembered him. Not yet. I wasn't ready for that.

"Yeah."

"I'm not sure if you remember me, but—"

"I was a couple of grades below you in high school, but I remember you."

My heart skipped a beat.

"Have you heard from Peter?" he asked me.

God, this is going to suck.

"We haven't, but my parents tried to get in contact with him this morning and found out that he has checked out of his hotel room."

Instead of being surprised, Zaq nodded. "Yeah, I figured that would happen."

My eyebrows shot up. "You knew?"

Zaq grabbed his cell phone and handed it to me. "Peter's mistress sent me these this morning."

"His what?" I nearly shouted. "Peter has a mistress?"

Why was I not surprised.

Zaq let out a rueful laugh. "Apparently."

I took the phone and started going through the pictures that had been sent to him. Most of them were for public viewing, just Peter and some brunette holding hands, attending a candlelight dinner, and cuddling on a couch.

There were a few that were a lot more graphic. That was a side of my brother that I never wanted to see. That was a sight of a woman I never wanted to see.

I shuddered in disgust.

"She told me that Peter couldn't force himself to go through with the marriage, that he was disgusted by the very idea of marrying me so he had run off with her." Zaq drew in a heavy breath. "She also said Peter wasn't going to pay any of the cancelation fees since today was the day of the wedding and I'd have to be financially responsible for all of it."

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