Separate Weddings, Separate Lives novel Chapter 13

"Teddy!" Danica screamed after Thaddeus in desperation.

"Thaddeus, this is your wedding. What do you think you're doing?"

Patrick rushed forward to block his path, and in the next moment, the rest of the Watson family closed in, surrounding Thaddeus.

Thaddeus stopped and turned back. His gaze fell on Danica, who was barely holding herself together, before sweeping across the people blocking his way. For a brief second, he nearly forgot what mattered most.

"Danica," he said quietly as he strode toward her. "You already knew, didn't you?"

She shook her head in denial. "I don't know anything. I really don't. All I know is that we're getting married today."

Thaddeus looked into her tear-filled eyes. For a fleeting moment, he wondered whether Louisa had cried like this for the past few days.

"Danica, don't you want to know why I—"

Before he could finish, she lunged forward and kissed him.

Her arms wrapped tightly around his neck as her lips brushed his ear. "Thaddeus, haven't you noticed? Besides Louisa, there's someone else missing today—someone very important."

Thaddeus narrowed his eyes.

She lowered her voice even further. "I've arranged for someone to take care of your mother. As long as you go through with this wedding, she'll return home safely."

"Danica," Thaddeus said, the veins on the back of his hand bulging as he gripped her arm.

It hurt, but compared to the humiliation of being abandoned at the altar or the catastrophic consequences that would befall the Watson family if this wedding fell through, the pain was nothing.

"Today, you only get to choose one," she reminded him softly. "Louisa, or your mother."

His family's collapse came rushing back all at once—the bankruptcy, his father's death, his mother's desperate attempt to take her own life before she was found in time.

His father's final words echoed in his head, telling him he had to take care of his mother.

His hesitation was already an answer, and Danica finally let out a breath she had been holding in.

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