“Because I was a coward.”
Margaret blinked.
“Noah—”
“No. You deserve the truth.”
He stared at his hands.
“I thought if you refused my invitation, it meant you hadn’t forgiven me for staying away.”
He swallowed.
“And I was afraid to ask.”
Margaret reached toward him.
Her fingers rested lightly against his wrist.
“I was never waiting for an apology as much as I was waiting for you.”
The words undid him.
He lowered his head.
Margaret placed one trembling hand against his hair.
For a moment, he was no longer a successful businessman wearing a six-thousand-dollar tuxedo.
He was the little boy who used to come home frightened from school and bury his face against his mother’s apron.
Outside, the string quartet stopped playing.
A knock came at the door.
Lucia entered, looking deeply uncomfortable.
“Mr. Hale, I apologize for interrupting.”
Noah stood.
“What is it?”
“There’s something you should see.”
She held out her tablet.
The screen displayed messages from Claire to the wedding staff.
Noah read the first one.
If the old woman arrives, do not allow her near the ceremony.
The second was worse.
She’s his mother, but she’s not welcome. Tell security she’s an uninvited guest.
Then came a final instruction.
