So this was it. My mother died… because of Piper. And the man who swore to protect me was shielding her.
Colin finally sent Piper home and turned around—only to see me, collapsed on the floor.
His expression flickered—guilt, frustration—then hardened.
“So you heard everything?”
His tone turned cold, like I was the problem.
“Don’t blame Piper. Your mom got greedy, okay? She kept pestering Piper to help her ‘invest’—she brought this on herself.”
He tossed a blank check on the table like it meant nothing.
“Write whatever number you want. But forget what you’ve heard. Let’s pretend nothing happened for the meantime. The wedding’s in five days. We’ll go through with it—peacefully.”
I stared at the man who once swore he'd love me for the rest of his life. Now, he felt like a stranger.
I wiped the tears from my face.
If my wedding was doomed to become my mother’s funeral, then five days from now… I’d return the favor—with interest.
***
I said nothing. He grew impatient, yanking off his tie and tossing it on the nightstand.
“If you get it, then go to sleep.”
But something snapped in me. The grief, the rage—it all poured out, raw and shaking.
“Pretend? Are you fucking serious?!”