Page 112 of Eight Days of Christmas
“So, it’s really over then?” His eyes flicked away.
Tears formed and fell without intention. She did love this man. And she didn’t want to hurt him. “Yes, I can’t marry you. You don’t even want to be married. Not really,” she whispered.
“But I thought…” Disbelief clouded his voice, and his hands tensed in hers. “I thought this is the kind of commitment you wanted. What says commitment more than a marriage proposal?”
“I’m so sorry.” Tears rolled down her cheeks—tears of sadness, remorse, and disappointment. No one spends four years in a relationship and expects it to end like this.
“Are you sure?”
She nodded through the tears.
“Because if I walk out of here, get back on that plane, and return to New York without you, that’s it. There will be no coming back from that for us.”
She knew he meant it. Him coming to Colorado and trying to piece together their broken relationship after being the one to request a break was monumental for him. He didn’t usually change his mind. But as much as it hurt, she knew it was the right thing to do.
“I know that, too.”
“Okay then.” He exhaled a mirthless laugh. “Merry Christmas to me, huh?”
Her chin quivered, and she held a flattened palm to her stomach.
He shook his head somberly. “He’s the reason for the wall around your heart?”
Isabella nodded, but what she didn’t say was that Leo was also the reason the wall had finally come down.
Harrison exhaled loudly before turning around, holding his head high and pushing through the doors. That was the Harrison she had come to know and love. He had a tremendous amount of pride. Some without merit. But today, he’d shown his vulnerable side. Isabella truly hoped he would open up and let someone else in someday.
But she couldn’t be that person for him anymore.
She dragged herself across the hall and slumped into her lonely seat at the wedding party table. She poured a glass of champagne, preparing to drown her sorrows in alcohol while she was being forced to watch the happily married couple dance together, kiss, whisper sweet nothings into one another’s ears, and cut cake and smash it into one another’s faces. She hoped their marriage lasted and they actually did live happily ever after. She never wanted her little sister’s heart to ache with the kind of unforgiving torture hers did right now.
After two glasses of champagne, making small talk with family and friends felt easier to handle. The buzz working through her veins caused her mind to care a little less that her life was in complete shambles. And the more unanswered texts sent to Leo, the more she told herself, they were really over this time.
When Norah handed her a third glass, she did not object. “You gonna be okay?” Her sister asked her.
“You know me, I’m like a cat…I always land on my feet.” Isabella held up her glass before taking a big swallow, the bubbly liquid tickling her throat as it went down.
“What are you gonna do now?”
“Go back to New York. It was silly of me to think I could possibly come back here. New York is my home. I’ve got a great job and great friends.” She hoped she sounded convincing. “But I’ll need to find a more permanent place to live. I can’t sleep on Todd and Margo’s couch forever. Besides,” she leaned into Norah, “between you and me, I think they’re more than just friends. So that puts me in an awkward position.”
“Yeah, that would definitely be awkward,” Norah agreed. “But you could find work here. And a place to live. It’s a little spendy in town but you could always look for a place in Denver. I’m sure Finn and Nina could find you a roommate.”
Her throat ached while the anguish permeated there. “I appreciate the sentiment, but I think you and I both know the main reason why I was even considering returning to Colorado. And since Leo practically shoved me into the arms of another man, I think it’s safe to say things between us are over.” She closed her eyes and kneaded the tension on her forehead with her fingertips.
“Maybe he just needs time.”
“I don’t know, Norah,” Isabella said as she sighed.
“Or maybe you should try to talk to him again.”
“I don’t even know where he was going.” She took another sip, feeling helpless.
“He’s supposed to be coming over to Mom and Dad’s to open gifts, so I’m sure he went back to his dad’s.”
“And if I do find him, then what?”
“Tell him you don’t want to marry that self-centered prick Harrison. And tell him that you love him and want to be with him.”
