The Wrong Fiancée

Lena's POV

I couldn't breathe.

People applauded loudly, around me, while my entire world felt like it was collapsing.

The man standing besides Eleanor was William Foster, Liam, my boyfriend.

I stared at them from across the room, my chest tightening painfully.

We'd been together for three years.

Three years of promises, plans, and believing we were building something together.

And now he was standing beside another woman while everyone celebrated their engagement.

Tears blurred my vision, I took a step backward, then another. I couldn't trust myself to stay there another second so I turned and walked away.

The laughter and music faded behind me as I pushed through a set of glass doors and ran outside.

It was really cold outside, I wrapped my arms around myself and tried to make sense of what I'd just seen.

‘How could Liam be getting married? No, Liam wouldn't do this to me, there had to be an explanation.’

Different questions kept playing in my head.

But then again. I had seen the ring, I saw how bright his smile was standing beside her, and how happy they looked.

A lump formed in my throat.

‘Was he planning on getting married to another woman while still in a relationship with me?’

All these years I had been nothing more than the other woman.

I blinked back tears. I wasn't going to cry, not at Liz's cousin's engagement party.

I decided to leave. I would take the next flight home, luckily I still had some money left in my savings, enough to get me back home and last a few more days.

I originally planned to use the money to start paying some of Mom's hospital bills but that would have to wait.

If I don't get a job soon I'll have to go back to the diner till I can get something stable

But for now I need to get back home, I'll make up an excuse on why I had to leave early.

The glass doors opened behind me.

I straightened immediately. Maybe Liz had noticed I left and came looking for me.

"You're late."

That definitely wasn't Liz.

I turned around, and saw a man standing a few feet away.

He was tall, easily around 6’1”. He wore a black suit, and his expression looked somewhere between irritated and exhausted.

“I'm sorry?” I asked, remembering his statement.

“You're late,” he repeated. “You know it's very unprofessional of you to be this late when you were informed of the time you were supposed to be here. I've been making excuses for you for the past hour. By the way you were supposed to call me the moment you arrived, that's why you were given my number.”

“Excuse me?”

“Look, I don't have time for this,” he continued, looking at the silver watch on his wrist. “You've wasted enough time already, my parents are already asking questions. We just need to go in there, smile, and get through the introductions. I'm sure Lauren already filled you in on everything.”

I stared at him in confusion. “What?”

“The story,” he said impatiently. “How we met. Look, if you didn't have enough time to go through everything, just say we met in the city. Keep it simple so we don't mess up. I'm Marcus, by the way. I know you probably already know my full name, but just call me Marcus, especially in front of my family. What's your name again?”

“Lena. Look, I think you're–” I wanted to explain to him that he was talking to the wrong person. But I was interrupted by the glass doors opening.

“Marcus? There you are.”

A woman stepped outside wrapping a silk shawl tightly around her shoulders. She looked between the two of us.

“I've been looking everywhere for you. You know you can't just leave your sister's engagement party like that. Is this her?” She asked, staring at me.

Marcus didn’t hesitate, he gave the woman a small smile, then reached out and gently took my hand, drawing me a step closer to him.

"Yes, Mom," he said softly. "Traffic out of the city was a nightmare, but she made it. Mom, this is my fiancée, Lena.”

"Oh," his mother said, with a surprised look. She didn't seem like she believed him, but it was her daughter’s engagement party. Whatever doubts she had, she wasn't about to cause a scene in front of their guests.

She stepped forward, offering a polite, elegant smile and pulling me into a brief hug.

"So this is the girl you've been hiding from us, Marcus. I must admit, you caught us completely by surprise."

She pulled back, staring at me like she expected something different for her eldest son.

Marcus's grip on my hand tightened. It wasn't a comforting squeeze, it felt like a silent command to hold my ground.

He cleared his throat. "The drive out of the city was exhausting, Mom. I wanted to let her catch her breath out here for a second before we face the crowd."

"Of course," she murmured. "Well, don't stay out in the cold too long. Your father and the Harringtons are waiting inside."

I looked at the woman who was smiling politely, then at Marcus. But as I looked past his shoulder through the glass doors, I saw the crowd inside. I saw Liam slow-dancing with Eleanor, whose head was resting on his chest.

If I told this woman that her son had grabbed a total stranger, it would cause a scene. The hosts would probably get involved, it would attract attention, people might start coming out to find out what was happening. And Liam would see me.

He’d see me standing out here, the “girlfriend” he didn't even bother to break up with, standing here, looking pathetic at his perfect engagement party.

I couldn't do it. I couldn't let him see me like this. Standing next to this stressed-out stranger was a shield. If I played along, just for a few minutes, I could find a way to slip away to my room quietly without losing my dignity.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, looked his mother right in the eye and said.

"The drive really was exhausting, Mrs. Hartley. But I'm very glad to finally meet you."

His mother looked at me for a second longer before nodding politely. "Well, come inside where it's warm. Let’s get you a drink, Lena.”