Chapter 1: The Corsage I Made for His Mother
My fiancé died before our wedding — three months later, his mother spotted me at another wedding and immediately tried to hide.
Adrian and I were supposed to get married that summer.
We'd already booked the venue.
I'd chosen my dress.
We'd argued over the cake flavor and laughed about how ridiculous we were being.
Then, six weeks before the wedding, Adrian was k*lled in a car accident.
The crash was so bad that we buried him in a closed casket.
I remember standing beside his mother, Colleen, at the funeral, holding her hand while they lowered Adrian into the ground.
I thought that was the worst day of my life.
Three months later, I learned I was wrong.
I'm a florist.
Weddings had always been my favorite jobs.
After Adrian d*ed, I couldn't even look at a bridal bouquet without thinking about the one I'd chosen for myself.
But eventually, I had bills to pay.
So three months after his funeral, I finally agreed to start taking wedding jobs again.
That morning, another florist I sometimes worked with called in sick and asked if I could cover a wedding for her.
I agreed.
A few hours later, I was arranging flowers at a reception venue I'd never worked at before when I noticed a familiar woman near the entrance.
Colleen.
I almost called out to her.
Then she saw me.
Her face changed.
She immediately turned away and disappeared down a side hallway.
That was strange.
Colleen and I hadn't spoken much since Adrian d*ed, but why would she hide from me?
I followed her.
"Colleen?"
She stopped.
For a second, she just stared at me.
"Meredith?"
"What are you doing here?"
She looked nervous.
"I could ask you the same thing."
"I'm working.
I'm the florist."
"Here?"
"Yes.
Why?"
Before she could answer, a wedding coordinator hurried toward us.
"Mrs.
Parker, we've been looking everywhere for you.
The groom needs his mother."
I stared at Colleen.
For a second, that explained everything.
Adrian had an older brother, Julian.
Of course.
This must be his wedding.
Julian and I had always gotten along well.
I won't lie — it hurt a little that he hadn't invited me.
But after Adrian's d*ath, I'd barely spoken to his family.
Maybe they thought a wedding would be too painful for me.
I tried not to take it personally.
Then I noticed the corsage on her wrist.
I'd made it myself that morning.
It was for the groom's mother.
Colleen glanced at me, then quickly followed the coordinator away.
I told myself that explained her strange behavior.
Maybe she'd simply felt awkward seeing me there.
A few minutes later, I spotted her near the groom's room.
This time, I almost walked away.
Of course she was there.
Her son was getting married.
She looked around before slipping inside.
Then I heard Colleen's voice.
"You need to hurry.
The ceremony starts in twenty minutes."
A man answered.
I stopped.
That wasn't Julian's voice.
Something about it made my whole body go cold.
I moved closer to the door.
Through the narrow opening, I could see Colleen.
Then the man stepped into view.
My hand flew to my mouth.
Adrian.
Alive.
And he was wearing the same suit he'd bought for our wedding.
I couldn't move.
"Does everything look okay?" he asked.
Colleen adjusted his tie.
"You look perfect."
Adrian smiled.
"Good.
I don't want anything going wrong today."
I stumbled backward before either of them could see me.
Three months earlier, I'd stood at Adrian's funeral believing I'd never hear his voice again.
Now he was alive.
His mother knew.
And they had both let me mourn him.
I turned and ran.
I barely made it to the restroom before the tears came.
I locked myself inside and cried until I could barely breathe.
My phone started ringing.
It was my assistant.
"Meredith?
The coordinator's looking for you.
They're about to start."
I looked at myself in the mirror.
My eyes were swollen.
My mascara was ruined.
"Meredith?
Are you okay?"
"No."
"Do you want me to take over?"
I thought about Adrian.
Alive.
Smiling.
Getting ready for a wedding while I'd spent three months grieving him.
"No."
"Are you sure?"
I wiped my face and picked up my florist badge.
And suddenly, I knew exactly what I was going to do next — and how I was going to make Adrian regret what he'd done to me.
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What is Meredith about to do — and will Adrian finally face what he put her through?
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