Chapter Seven
ANDIE STARED AT HER reflection in the mirror, and what she saw...was a woman who absolutely had no idea of what she was doing.
I’m doomed.
She looked at herself again. Tried her best to appreciate the wedding dress that Paul had conjured like magic.
It was the most amazingly beautiful dress, a lace and silk concoction that gently hugged her every curve while also making her look a lot taller than she really was.
She had no idea how that was possible, really.
Or maybe that was why expensive dresses were, well, expensive.
They made the impossible possible, and that was what people paid the big bucks for, and—
Stop it with the distraction, Andromeda Jackson!
It’s not like you to bury your head in the stand!
You’re...you’re a parrot, not an ostrich!
Parrots are chubby, funny, talkative, and...and smart!
Parrots figure things out instead of hiding from their problems.
So think like a parrot, not an ostrich!
Andie took a deep breath and tried one more time to recalibrate her thoughts.
So...
She had originally tried to convince herself that all she needed were three things in common with Harry and Star, and that would be her sign that this wedding was the right thing to do.
That obviously didn’t work the way she thought it would, but...so what?
That was a rule she made up herself, rather than an all-important rule written in the Bible.
And...and besides, nowhere did it say in the Bible that love was a condition for marriage.
Right?
So this...this was fine.
Love might not be her primary reason for marrying Paul, but she had other reasons, and they weren’t bad reasons.
Like...
She was marrying Paul...
Because he was hot.
Because he could afford to give her $55,000.
Because she couldn’t bear thinking he’d end up with her aunt.
Surely, she had a better reason.
Or at least any reason that didn’t sound too selfish.
Think, Andie, think!
She...
She...
No. Oh no. Oh God.
A sob rushed past her throat, and Andie barely managed to cover her mouth to muffle its sound.
I’m doing the wrong thing, aren’t I?
Tears blurred her gaze as she looked around in panic.
I...
I...
I...found it!
Tucked into the corner of the powder room was a smaller door, either used for the staff...or perhaps it was to allow the judge that owned this office an exit away from prying eyes?
Didn’t matter either way.
That door was her way out, and Andie’s heart hammered against her chest as she picked her skirts up. How was it that even though she had only known Paul for a short time—
She only had to close her eyes, and it was just so painfully easy to envision every chiseled inch of his handsome face.
And when she thought of what she was about to do—
Just the thought of leaving him and never ever seeing him again—
Oh, how strangely unbearable it was!
Tears ran down her cheeks endlessly as she made her way to the door.
For better or for worse...
All she wanted to do was the right thing.
And while her reasons for wanting to marry Paul weren’t completely wrong—
They weren’t completely right either, and that...
That said it all.
I’m sorry, Paul.
He’d probably sue her for this, and she’d probably go to prison for this, too, but—
God wants you to know that He loves you...
She had made a choice.
I’m so, so tired of pretending.
She had made a promise.
And...and she intended to keep it—
I thought I knew for sure that this marriage was what You wanted.
Would rather leave—
But I just don’t know anymore.
Than risk marrying someone God hadn’t chosen for her.