He Thought I’d Beg, Until I Cancelled Our Engagement Chapter 03

Ethan explained that all of it was just to help Natalie through her breakup.

“It’s been hard for her to get over that relationship. She’s up all night. We’re trying to take her mind off it. It’s not what you think.”

He wiped the dust off the velvet box with a tissue, his voice patient.

“She wanted to book the suite. I was afraid the front desk wouldn’t save her a good room, so I paid for it through my VIP account. I added the note while I was at it.”

“You remember that she likes cherries,” I said. “Do you remember that I’m allergic to mangoes?”

His fingers stopped moving over the box.

“Don’t you love tropical fruit?”

I didn’t ask again.

The Thanksgiving before, he gave me a box of mango tartlets.

I broke out in a red rash all over after eating them and spent the night on an IV.

He sat beside my hospital bed, pouring me water and promising he wouldn’t forget again.

Apparently, he remembered who needed looking after.

It just wasn’t me.

The company sent my official transfer paperwork the next day. I was due in Pittsburgh by the end of the month.

I didn’t tell anyone right away.

I was the one who stayed up late putting the wedding plan together. I paid the deposits, too.

I checked each refund deadline and submitted the cancellation requests one by one.

Then I signed into our joint account and transferred out every cent I put in.

That afternoon, Ethan’s mother sent a long voice message.

“Claire, I hear you’re putting the wedding on hold again?”

“Yes.”

“I know you care about him, but a man needs his own friends. Nat’s just had her heart broken. Of course Ethan should look after her. Don’t be so petty.”

She paused, then issued another warning. “Both families will be there on Thanksgiving. Wear something simple. Nat’s already upset. Don’t upstage her. You’re going to be family. Act like it.”

“He said I was being petty?”

“Who knows you better than he does? Every time you get upset, you just wait for him to give in.”

I listened to the message without a word.

In five years, I lost my temper with him exactly twice.

Once, when he first started the company, he wanted my twenty thousand dollars in wedding savings to buy a car that would make him look successful.

I flat-out refused.

He wrote out a thick stack of IOUs and promised to repay every cent with interest once the company took off. He’d give me his life, too.

The other time was the first meeting between our parents. He went to the airport to pick up Natalie after she lost her passport, leaving me to handle all the relatives alone.

He stood outside my building all night, and I relented.

To him, neither of those times was about me getting hurt.

They were just ways of getting him to sweet-talk me.

That evening, Ethan’s family came to the apartment for dinner. They said they wanted to discuss the Thanksgiving menu.

As soon as I set down the tea, his younger sister pointed at the menu.

“Claire, we have to get the lobster bisque and the roasted sea bass. You know the manager. Ask him to add those two signature dishes.”

“We’re already over budget,” I said.

“Then cover the difference. You make good money.” Her lip curled. “You don’t want our parents thinking we cheaped out on them, do you?”

I looked around at the people who wouldn’t even save me a seat.

They wouldn’t let me eat with them, but none of them saw a problem with eating the extras I paid for.

Ethan ladled some soup into a bowl for me. “Our parents love those dishes. Just talk to the manager. I’ll pay you back.”

“Then we can talk about it later.”

Ethan lowered his voice. “Just eat. Don’t make a scene in front of everyone.”

I didn’t touch the soup.

After dinner, I texted Mr. Parker anyway.

The two signature dishes went on my tab.

Ethan went to shower. His computer glowed on the desk, Messages still open.

I walked over and saw a new text from Natalie.

[Ethan, I get the seat of honor on Thanksgiving, and Claire doesn’t even get a chair. Won’t she feel awful?]

His reply was right above it.

[It’s fine. I already deleted her from the seating chart. If she asks, we’ll say there are too many relatives and not enough chairs.]

[She loves running things anyway. Let her serve. You just sit back and relax.]

I scrolled up. There was one more message.

[She said she wanted to put the wedding on hold today. That’s actually good. It means…]