Jeez, whatever happened between them must be bad.
“I just found out Jason cheated on me,” she admits, her voice heavy with shame. “And the worst part is that he got her pregnant.”
I’m stunned into silence for a moment, unable to process what she said. “Wow. That was not on my bingo card for today.”
Catherine looks away and wipes her eyes. “I don’t know what to do, but I can’t be here.”
“I’m sorry that happened, Catherine. Let’s get out of here. I’ll drive you back to Seattle,” I suggest.
Catherine looks up at me, disbelief etched on her face. “You’d do that? Even with your parents and daughter here?”
I nod reassuringly. “Yeah, my parents can take care of Alice. I’ll text Erica.”
She bites her lip, still uncertain. “Okay,” she finally agrees.
I stride over to the closet and rummage through the clothes for a moment. I grab a random yellow sundress and pass it to Catherine.
“Here, put this on,” I tell her.
She eyes the dress with distaste. “You want me to put on a random person’s dress?”
I eye her, unable to believe she’s being picky right now. “Do you really want to leave in a slip? Put it on so we can get the hell out of here. We’ll be in Seattle before you know it.”
Catherine takes the dress from me, and I turn away from her so she can quickly slip it on.
“Why are you helping me, anyway?” she asks as she’s getting dressed.
I shrug, staring at the wall in front of me. “I don’t know. I guess I would want someone to do the same for me.”
“Okay, I’m ready,” she says.
When I turn back to her, she wipes her tears and peers up at me with a determined look on her face.
I nod and lead us out of the room and down the hallway, carefully avoiding any staff or wedding guests.
We make it to the back door, but I spot Jason coming our way just as we’re about to slip out. His eyes are scanning the hall, and he’s moving swiftly.
“Hold on,” I whisper.
I grab Catherine’s hand and pull her close to me, trying to make us as small as possible so that we can slip past him without getting caught. We stay perfectly still, our breaths shallow and quiet until finally, he passes us by without even a glance in our direction.
Relieved, I take Catherine’s hand again and usher her through the door. We race down the stairs and across the lawns until we reach my car, where I unlock the doors. Catherine slides into the passenger’s seat as I assume my position in the driver’s seat, starting the engine as soon as we both slip in.
As we drive away, I glance at Catherine in the passenger seat. She stares out the window, her face reflecting newfound strength.
I turn the wheel as we peel out of the estate and onto the highway.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” I ask.
She sighs and relaxes back against her seat now that we’re off the property. “Let’s see… I feel confused, angry, and betrayed,” she admits. “But at least I didn’t get married to him. I’m actually relieved I turned down his invitation to move into his place when we first got engaged.”
I observe, impressed at how levelheaded she is despite the situation.
“Well, at least you’re free.”
Catherine shakes her head. “Not really,” she replies. “Jason isn’t the type to just let things go. I’m sure he’ll blow my phone up as soon as he realizes I’m not at the estate anymore.”
I eye her in her sundress, careful not to stare too much at her exposed collarbone and long legs and the way the dress drapes perfectly against her curves. “Do you even have your phone on you?”
