Finally, I contacted the appropriate office to withdraw the marriage paperwork.
The legal part of the marriage was stopped before it could happen.
But I still had a decision to make about the ceremony.
I could cancel everything quietly.
Or I could let Oliver arrive believing his plan was working and give everyone the opportunity to hear the truth for themselves.
I chose the second option.
The next morning, the house was full of activity.
The children were getting dressed.
Hair was being fixed.
Shoes were being searched for.
Harry complained about his formal clothes.
For everyone else, it looked like a normal wedding morning.
But I knew exactly what was waiting for us.
When Selena asked whether I was okay, I told her I would be.
Harry looked at me carefully.
“That’s not the same thing,” he said.
He was right.
So I told the children only what they needed to know.
“Oliver made some choices that weren’t right,” I explained. “But we’re going to be okay.”
They trusted me.
That was enough.
At the venue, everything looked beautiful.
Oliver stood waiting for me with the same confident smile I had once loved.
For a moment, I felt sad.
Not because I wanted him back.
I was mourning the person I thought he was.
Then I looked at my children and kept walking.
Oliver greeted guests throughout the reception as though everything had gone exactly according to plan.
He smiled.
