Epilogue #2
How incredibly wrong I was. Regardless of the true nature of my feelings about our relationship, nothing about these revelations soften the blow of a betrayal of this magnitude.
I stare back at him, my eyes widening as they search his face, desperate to find any emotion that holds the smallest bit of guilt or remorse.
Anything to tie his words and his expression together.
But there’s nothing. He stares back at me, his face flushed, his eyes pinned to mine as if I’m the one to blame.
As if I’m the one he’s mad at…yet he’s claiming we can work past this.
My mind swirls in confusion, my body racking with so many different emotions, I can’t pluck a single one out to dissect.
“I don’t want to work past this, Chad. This never should have happened, or you should have at least come to me sooner than thirty minutes before we’re supposed to meet at the altar."
Chad’s eyes narrow subtly and if I were already overanalyzing every inch of his expression, I would have missed it. “I told you I ended things with her. Don’t be ridiculous. We can still get married and figure this all out afterwards.”
I choke out a pained, harsh laugh as the panic that was building behind my ribcage breaks through, storming through my veins. I’m immediately on my feet, reaching around the back of my head as I begin ripping bobby-pins from my hair.
“No. No,” I say again, shaking my head as the tears spring from my eyes. I throw a handful of the pins at him. “No!”
“Natalie, stop,” he says, his voice commanding, but I ignore him.
Fuck that. My hair tumbles down my back, half of it hard and slicked back against my scalp from all the hairspray the stylist sprayed to get it to hold.
My arms bend as I reach back to the zipper, tugging viciously on it, but it snags. “What are you doing?”
I tug again, this time harder, ripping part of the lace, but the zipper is still lodged and I can’t get it down. My eyes burn and my cheeks are wet. “Get out,” I demand, my voice breaking around the two words as my heart pounds harder. I’m trapped inside this godforsaken dress “Get. OUT!”
Chad lifts his hands as if he’s feigning innocence, taking a large step backwards. “Fine. Jesus,” he mutters, his head slicing from side to side. “When you’re ready to stop throwing a temper tantrum, we can talk about things.”
“There’s nothing to talk about!” I unintentionally raise my voice, the sound shrill and foreign. “We’re done, Chad. This is over. The wedding is off.”
He cuts his eyes at me. “You’re the one making this choice, I hope you realize that.”
“Sure,” I snort, shaking my head at him. “You go and cheat on me for months and you’re the victim.” I close my eyes, sucking in a deep breath before looking back at him as I exhale. “Just please, go. I can’t even stand to look at you right now.”
He huffs out a breath, hovering just inside the door as he stares at me in disbelief with his hand on the knob.
I turn my back to him, nausea rolling in the pit of my stomach as I stare out through the window, watching as friends and family all wait in the lawn of the manor, some taking their seats and others standing and talking with one another.
No one stands by the altar, even though Chad should be down there with his groomsmen. I wonder if he told them or if any of them knew.
The inside corners of my eyebrows turn downward and my anxiety immediately spikes. What if people did know? What if, this entire time, I’ve been the one living in the dark? Embarrassment tinges my cheeks at the thought.
“Who all knows?”
“What?” Chad says from the door as he continues to linger inside, almost as if he’s afraid to walk out of the room.
Turning back to him, my gaze latches onto his. “Who. Knows.”
“No one,” he says in a rush, shaking his head. “I didn’t tell anyone.”
Straightening my spine, I lift my chin and force my emotions back down. He won’t see me crying anymore. He doesn’t deserve any of my tears. “Good. You can explain to everyone.”
Grabbing my bag and my purse, I throw them both over my shoulder, leaving on my wedding dress as I slide my feet back into my sandals.
“Where are you going?”
“Anywhere but here.” My footsteps are purposeful as I march towards him, pulling the ring from my finger and handing it to him as I stop beside him. “You have until Monday to get all of your shit out of my apartment.”
“Natalie.” His voice drops lower and I don’t give him a chance to speak again as I shake my head.
“There’s nothing left to say.” I run my tongue over my top teeth, ignoring the shock that continues to run rampant through my veins. I can’t believe this is actually happening. “Goodbye, Chad.”
My heart pounds harder as I push past him, brushing his hand to the side as I reach for the knob and quickly turn it. Grabbing the bottom of my dress, I gather it in my hand and lift it higher before I break out into a sprint down the hall.
I didn’t think that I’d be starting my life over two short months after turning twenty-nine. I was supposed to finish out the last year of my twenties married to the man everyone wanted me to marry.
How quickly things can change in the blink of an eye.
We’re on the first floor of the old manor and I quickly duck down another hallway, out of sight from where anyone might be. There’s a door at the end of the hall that leads to the side of the house. The sun shines brightly above, warming my skin as I slip out through the door and into the yard.
Not bothering to notice if anyone sees me, I glance to the right, towards the front of the property to the road.
I don’t care if anyone sees me now. There isn’t a single person here who can stop me now.
I’ve always known that Chad wasn’t the man for me, but I settled.
It was what everyone else wanted for me and now, after what he did, this is my chance to do what I want.
No one is convincing me to stay and work things out with him.
No one is talking me into this marriage.
And no one is ever going to hurt me like this again.