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"Alright, well, I have a producer behind me who’s going to countdown, and after he says one, we’ll be live. I'll introduce you and start asking questions. Don't think about people watching you Haley, it'll make you crazy. You and I are just having a conversation like we did on the phone earlier. Let's keep it easy and stick to the points, alright?"
"Okay," I nodded, glancing over to Cooper, who gave me a thumbs up and a nod.
"Okay," a voice said behind Mr. Rivas. "We are live in three, two, one."
Mr. Rivas smiled broadly at the camera. "Welcome to Celebrity Times News. We have a hot interview that quite literally fell in my lap this morning and boy am I glad it did. You all have seen pictures of the runaway bride, leaving Congressman Marcus Tullane in the dust, but we've heard very little from the bride since her getaway. That all changed today. So, let me welcome Haley Ellis, the runaway bride. Haley, thank you for being here."
"Thank you. I appreciate the offer."
"Now Haley, I want to make it clear to our audience in full transparency, I have been trying to get an interview with you pretty much seconds after you ran out of that church,"he laughed. "You’ve been resistant to giving any comment whatsoever. Can you tell me why that is?"
I sucked in a deep breath. "To be perfectly honest, I don't like being in the public eye, which sounds ironic now, considering I was engaged to a public figure. But also, I had a lot to sort through after running out on Marcus and needed some time to process what had happened and figure out where I want to go from here."
"That's understandable, and I'm glad you agreed to speak with us today. Now your ex-fiancé has been interviewed dozens of times, and each time he has smeared your name and reputation. Although you're not a celebrity like he is, you do have a reputation as a beloved art teacher at one of our local elementary schools here in San Diego. How does it feel knowing he has such awful things to say about you?"
I swallowed hard. I had prepared for this, so I knew what to say, but it didn't make the words come out any easier. "Well, part of me doesn't blame him, considering how I left him at the altar. He's hurt and embarrassed, so he's lashing out. However, Marcus is well aware of the events that transpired before the ceremony that led up to me leaving, so it's frustrating to listen to him lie, which only serves to make himself look better."
"Well, I'm not going to beat around the bush, so I'll just ask you outright what happened before the wedding that sent you running for the hills?"
I looked over at Cooper, concern etched all over his face. I nodded to let him know I was okay, then focused on Clark.
"I was having some second thoughts, which they say is common on your wedding day, and I was looking for some reassurance from my fiancé, so I sought Marcus out to have a conversation and..."
The words stuck in my throat. Once they left my mouth, I couldn’t take them back, and there would be no containing Marcus’s fury or hiding my embarrassment of that day.
"It's all right, Haley. Take your time," Clark encouraged.
I swallowed hard and looked into the camera. "Well, as I said, I was having some wedding day jitters, and I thought if I could just talk to Marcus, it would ease some of my worries. I went to the groom's suite and knocked as I entered the room—for future reference, I recommend waiting until you get a response before entering—and I caught him cheating on me."
"And that person was?" Clark prodded.
I told him before I wouldn't answer that question and I stuck to my guns. "I will not reveal the identity of that person. She was no one close to me, and I don't think it's fair to upend her life just because she has poor taste in men."
"But you think it's fair to oust Marcus?"
I bit my lip, measuring my words carefully. "That's different. Marcus is a public servant, and he has been openly lying about what happened between us. He knew what he was doing was wrong, and he did it anyway. When I caught him, he was more concerned with how it would appear to our guests if we didn’t get married, than apologetic about what he’d done. He wanted to get married and work through his indiscretion afterwards."
Clark sucked in a dramatic breath. "He said that right after you caught him doing the dirty with somebody else? For some context, Haley, how long after you caught him did he say that?"
"I don't know, maybe five minutes."
"That’s just wild. I can’t imagine what was going through your head. So tell me, what happened next?"
I took another steadying breath, and glanced over at Cooper as a touchstone and then through the window at Evelyn and Natalie, who were doing silly dances to help me keep it light.
"Well, I'm not proud to say this, but I headed back to the bridal suite and got herded to the aisle by the wedding planner. Everything was moving so fast and before I knew it, I found myself at the end of the aisle with my maid of honor. As I was standing there, the reality of the situation hit me."
"Can you elaborate a little more on what occurred to you?" Clark asked.
"I realized it would've been a terrible mistake—even if I hadn’t had caught him cheating. We weren’t right for each other and I couldn’t ignore it anymore. My timing was terrible, and I wished I would have dealt with it differently, but in that moment I panicked. I turned to my best friend, and told her I needed to get out of there and bless her heart, she had my back like she always does and she got me out of there and out of town, no questions asked."
"That's a good friend for you," Clark commented.
"The very best," I said, beginning to choke up. "I owe her a lot. Reporters and Marcus's representatives have hounded her ever since I left town, and she’s doggedly protected my privacy during this time. She’s a wonderful human being and I can't thank her enough. I owe her a lot."
"Well, considering all that happened, I'm glad you had her in your corner."
"Me too," I said with a smile, and I meant it. I hoped Tess would see this.
