Page 18 of Kiss the Bride

“I’d have to check, but it is possible. Alternatively, he could have used cash advances from your account to pay off his debts.”

“Has he?”

“Most of the recent expenses appear to be wedding-related, and you are close to your limit. There wouldn’t have been the opportunity for him to do much harm.”

“Thank you.”

Crazy.

Insane.

Unfucking-believable. How on earth did Mitch hide so much from me? Why didn’t I notice?

One day, I want to look back and laugh about my lucky escape and think about how close I’d come to being legally bound to a man destined to destroy more than my heart. One day, I’ll think that Lina did me a favor by proving what a lying, cheating, asshole of a bastard I almost married.

Right now, I have to adult up and prove to my family and friends that it doesn’t matter my wedding day has become the worst embarrassment of my life.

I thought I was smart. Top of my business analytics studies and Mitchel’s father assured me nepotism had nothing to do with hiring me on in my last year of university.

Being smart at books hasn’t saved me.

I trusted in Hunter’s love—until he took it away.

I trusted in Mitchel’s declarations of love and commitment and had been stupid enough to believe in his promises of forever. Until I saw with my own two eyes that it had been a lie.

All the love I felt for Mitch suddenly gives way to the doubts that I tried to convince myself were pre-wedding jitters. No, not jitters--just intuition and self-awareness. Mitch was my rebound. Yes, I loved him and was faithful to him, but we never clicked the way Hunter and I had.

I hate Mitch for what he’s done to our families. He’s betrayed my father’s trust and I can’t even think about what this is doing to my mother. I hope Hunter’s mother is pouring her themost expensive glass of champagne and assuring her thatlittle Hunterwill protect his precious Olivia.

How long before Hunter’s mother and mine start plotting to bring us back together?

No.

I refuse to think like that.

Of course, our mothers will start their plotting but surely they’ll wait until the caterers have cleaned up from the wedding that never was? I don’t know whether to hope that everyone is too busy gossiping over my humiliation to think about what happens next. What does come next? Am I expected to turn up to work on Monday and greet the man who is my boss and was supposed to be my father-in-law? Do I go back home and change the sheets on my bed and pretend I can sleep in that room?

“Just get me out of here,” I snap, standing as Hunter finishes locking up his boat. I am not a victim and refuse to keep blubbering away as if my life ended because my fiancé is a lying, cheating, bastard. “I’m done.” But with those words, my bravado falters.

My fiancé is sleeping with another woman.Who else has he slept with while engaged to me?

On our wedding day, my fiancé slept with my bridesmaid. They’ve betrayed me in so many ways it hurts my head to count. It doesn’t matter how many times, once is enough to kill any relationship I have with either of them.

“Where do you want to go?” Hunter offers me his hand to step off the boat, ignoring the ridiculousness of my high heels. I should have changed in the car. One of my suitcases is half filled with shoes.

“I don’t know.” I shrug after making the most honest and truthful statement of the day. “Other than I no longer want to wake up as Mrs. Hazel.”

“Trust me.”

I choose to hear it as a statement because this sure as hell isn’t a day for me to trust anyone.

But, if it isn’t a question, then Hunter doesn’t expect an answer. And I do … trust him.

Her Very Best Friend

Hunter

I’ll feel better whenLiv lets me know where she wants to go, but as we leave the marina, she is curled up in the passenger seat, that awful cardigan wrapped around her knees. She won’t tell me where she wants to go, or what she wants to do. She doesn’t want to see a friend, go to her parents, or return home. It’s too early to head to the airport, so I do the only thing I can think of—take her to another happy place.

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