Wedding Planning Was Too Much Trouble, So I Left Him

Yale Sutton pushed open the door.

His gaze swept across the room and landed on me. He froze for a moment, then quickly looked away and turned to the girl beside him.

"Nora, have you decided what color you want?"

After his company's annual party last year, he'd mentioned her when he got home.

"We've got a new intern named Nora Quinn. She's really sharp."

After that, her name started coming up more and more often.

"Nora said..."

"Nora thinks..."

"Nora recommended..."

I hadn't thought much of it at the time.

So this was her.

Nora pulled out her phone and showed Yale a picture.

"What do you think of this misty blue? I saw it online and saved it right away."

Yale took her phone, glanced at the picture, then picked up a color swatch from the table to compare.

"Misty blue." He held the swatch beside her face. "It suits you."

I'd asked him the same thing when I was choosing my wedding dress.

He hadn't even looked.

"Anything's fine."

Claire Bennett slid a stack of renderings across the table.

Yale pulled out a chair and sat down, motioning for Nora to sit beside him. Then he opened the sample book and started going through it with her.

As he flipped through the pages, his eyes flicked briefly in my direction.

Nora pointed to one of the designs.

"This one's pretty good, but do you think it's a little too plain?"

Yale considered it seriously.

"I'll ask if they have any other styles."

He got up to speak with Claire, but Nora caught his arm.

"I was just throwing it out there. You don't have to go to all that trouble."

"Anything you say, even in passing, matters to me."

He lightly tapped the tip of her nose before walking toward the counter.

The phone on the table buzzed.

I glanced down.

A message from Yale had appeared on my screen.

[Wait until I get home. I'll explain.]

Beside me, Nora was already chatting excitedly with Claire.

"My fiancé is so involved with the wedding.

"He picked out the invitations and the bouquets himself. I don't have to worry about anything."

Her eyes shone as she spoke, her happiness impossible to hide.

I listened from the side as my heart sank little by little.

Yale came back from the counter with another sample book and handed it to Nora.

"I already asked about the table decor for you."

He opened it to a page he'd folded down at the corner.

"The textile company can make the tasseled table runners. I've already ordered a sample. We can look at it next month."

For the past few months, he'd kept telling me he was swamped with work.

Whenever I asked what he was busy with, he said there was a new project.

So this was the "project."

He'd been planning a dream wedding for another woman.

Nora flipped to the dessert-table section.

"Oh, right. I don't think I've picked the desserts yet."

"It's already done," Yale said. "Low-sugar macarons. You're worried about gaining weight, so I had them cut the sugar by thirty percent. I also gave them your dietary restrictions."

Nora smiled and nudged him playfully.

"How do you know me so well?"

She closed the book and finally noticed me sitting off to the side.

"You're here by yourself again? Your fiancé still hasn't come to help you?"

Yale's hand stopped on the color swatches.

"He's busy," I said.

Busy loving another woman.

I folded the renderings in half and slipped them into my bag.

Nora didn't notice Yale's hesitation. She pulled out her phone and held up a QR code.

"Let's add each other! We can compare wedding ideas later."

Her smile was bright and guileless.

Yale's fingers trembled slightly against the color swatches.

"Sure."

I took out my phone and calmly scanned the code.

A moment later, Nora sent me a high-resolution photo.

It showed a dark blue velvet gift box stamped with a gold cloud pattern.

"Look! My fiancé had these favor boxes custom-made. His taste is seriously amazing!"

I opened the picture and zoomed in on the gilded design.

"My fiancé even sketched the design himself. It's supposed to symbolize success and a bright future."

Last month, I'd brought up wedding favors with Yale too.

I'd found a handmade candy box I liked and sent him the link.