Why Does Laurie Leave In If I Never Met You?

Three years ago, Laura signed her name on divorce papers that ended what she believed was the perfect marriage. Her husband, Michael, once the most devoted man she knew, had become cold, detached, and cruel, pushing her away with a precision that shattered her heart. She believed the rumors, the lies, and the whispers that every act of care he’d once shown her was borrowed from another woman, his first love. Kayla. Now, years later, Laura is a successful lawyer, determined never to fall prey to love again. But when Michael walks into her firm seeking representation for his own divorce from the same woman who destroyed their marriage; the truth begins to unravel. What she thought was betrayal was, in fact, sacrifice. And when their child is kidnapped in a web of supernatural politics and bloodline secrets, Laura and Michael are forced together once more.

For twenty-three years, Elena Hart and Adrian Cole have been inseparable. They grew up together, shared a childhood promise to marry one day and became so close that everyone believed they were destined to be together. Everyone except Adrian. For two years, Elena has lived like Adrian's lover. They share a bed, go on dates and say I love you, but whenever she asks what they truly are, Adrian gives her the same answer. They are only best friends. Then Isabelle Laurent, the college crush Adrian had never truly gotten over, returns. In a matter of days, Adrian begins pursuing the woman he once believed he could never have. He tells Elena that their two years together meant nothing and warns her not to mistake their relationship for love. So Elena leaves. A thousand miles away, she starts over and pours herself into her dream of opening a dance studio. For the first time, she begins building a life that has nothing to do with Adrian. Adrian is certain she will return, just as she always has. But this time, Elena doesn't. As the months pass, Adrian slowly realizes that the woman he thought he could never love is the only person he can no longer live without. By the time he finally goes after her, Elena is no longer waiting. Worse, there is another man standing beside her and Elena is hiding a secret Adrian never knew existed. When the truth finally comes out, Adrian may discover that the promise he once treated like a childish joke is the one promise he will never get the chance to keep.

Just three days after we got engaged, I stumbled across a private story posted by the girl he had grown up with. 'Too bad the boy who confessed to me ninety-nine times is marrying someone else in ten days.' In the photo, he trailed behind her through a crowded mall, his arms loaded with shopping bags, looking as if he had rehearsed the scene a hundred times. Curious, I scrolled down to read the comments. 'No way. The childhood-best-friend and first-love storyline still lost? Girl, that hurts.' 'Lost? He's getting married and still spending the whole day shopping with her. She didn't lose anything.' 'I feel bad for the bride. I'm seriously waiting for confession number one hundred to happen at the wedding, followed by a runaway groom scene.' Watching strangers bicker in the comments, I quietly pressed the like button, blending into their chaos. None of them knew that in just ten days, I would be the one stepping away from the altar. The fake-death package I'd ordered was already in motion. While my fiance and his childhood sweetheart mourned the love they claimed was out of reach, I quietly counted down the days until I could disappear for good.

My mother was dying. Her only wish before she passed was to see me married. For 27 days, I begged my girlfriend, Monica Teller, and she finally agreed to register for marriage with me on the 27th day. I waited at the courthouse until closing, but she never came. That same day, her childhood sweetheart, Gurney Barnes, posted their marriage certificate on social media. [Time sure flies. Three more days, and we'll have been married for a month.] It was then I finally realized that she had married her childhood sweetheart since the first day I started begging her. Not long after, an apology text from Monica buzzed on my phone. [I'm so sorry, Lincoln. Gurney's family was forcing him into marriage. I couldn't stand by and watch him get shackled to a stranger. Just give it three days. We'll file for divorce. Three days later, I'll marry you." Three days later, she showed up at the courthouse in a wedding gown, But the only thing waiting for her was my message. [Goodbye, Monica. May we never meet again.]

The moment I decided to leave Vincent Graves, I did three things. First, I recalled the pregnancy report I had been about to forward to him and replaced it with a scheduled breakup message. Second, I called the bridal boutique and cancelled the custom order for my wedding dress. I had been measured three times for it. I had waited five months. I never wore it. I never would. Third, I called Dr. Helena Shaw and accepted the invitation I had turned down a week ago. An eight-year medical research program. Completely sealed. No contact with the outside world. Before he could spring the proposal he had been planning, I vanished from his life completely. He never noticed that while he let Cora take my place at the wedding rehearsal and stayed out all night, I was quietly erasing every trace of myself, step by step. I became exactly the wife Vincent always said he wanted: reasonable, gracious, unbothered. But after I was gone, he lost control and asked me, "Why aren't you angry? Don't you love me anymore?" I said nothing. I only remembered the flirtatious voice messages Cora had sent him, the ones I had heard from his phone. And I calmly dialed the number that would take me away.

On the day of our tenth wedding anniversary, my wife, Cara Dempsey, jumped from ten thousand feet in the air after hearing that her first love's plane had crashed. It was only then that I finally understood the only man she ever truly loved all these years was Luthen Waltz. When we were both sent back in time to relive our teenage years, she wasted no time making a grand, public confession to Luthen, completely cutting ties with me. I just stood there, watching the two of them kiss like they couldn’t bear to be apart, and in that moment, my heart felt nothing. From that day on, we were over, and we lived our separate lives. Ten years later, we crossed paths again at a five-star hotel in Harbor City. She, who had become a celebrity adored by the world, was wearing a gown, laughing in Luthen’s arms. When she saw me wandering through the hotel, searching for someone, she thought I had come looking for her. “George, stop wasting your time! Even in ten years, I will never choose you!” I didn’t respond. Instead, I looked toward the little girl running toward me, calling me Dad, and gave her the warmest smile. Cara’s expression froze. Tears welled in her eyes as she choked out, “You lied to me, didn’t you? You said you hated kids and that you’d only ever love me.”