Three days before my wedding, Dad withdrew his promise to escort me down the aisle. Mom insisted I walk alone, keep smiling, and avoid unnecessary drama.
They thought I would enter the stone barn without anyone beside me. Neither realized another father was prepared to accompany me.
I was arranging fourteen copper vases with lavender, rosemary, and white dahlias in my workshop when Dad phoned.
My pruning shears remained in my hand as Richard Reed casually informed me he’d changed his mind about walking me down the aisle.
“Why?” I asked.
“Lauren is going through a difficult time. Watching me walk you down the aisle would hurt her.”
My older sister, Lauren, had spent her entire life escaping consequences.
Now that her marriage was falling apart, she’d threatened to withhold Christmas visits with Sophie and Noah, her children, if Dad walked beside me.
“She isn’t getting married,” I said. “I am.”
Dad urged me not to portray his choice as heartless.
“You chose her.”
“Amelia, I’m sorry.”
“No. You’re uncomfortable. That isn’t the same thing.”
Mom called ten minutes after our conversation ended.
Diane described walking alone as an empowering gesture, pointing out that I already had Ethan.
“And that means I don’t get to be hurt?”
Her silence conveyed annoyance rather than remorse.
“Walk by yourself. Smile, and don’t embarrass anyone.”
Twenty minutes afterward, Ethan discovered me sitting behind the workshop.
He slipped his arm around my shoulders, never suggesting I forgive them or sacrifice my feelings to maintain harmony.
What happened next changed everything… FULL STORY on the next page.
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