Chapter 4 Family Dinner
886 Words
My thoughts spun in circles, refusing to settle on an answer.
I practically fled home and had my assistant start digging for proof of Ambrose and Summer's affair.
After that, I forced myself to sleep.
I knew tomorrow's family dinner would be anything but simple.
*****
The next evening, I walked into the family dinner and found everyone gathered in perfect harmony.
Summer sat beside Ambrose with her arms wrapped around his, looking shy and sweet.
Ambrose was smiling as he fed her bites of steak, his eyes soft with affection. At a glance, they looked like the engaged couple, not us.
What killed me was that my parents weren't even trying to stop this. They just sat there beaming at the two of them.
'Do they even see me as their daughter?' I thought bitterly.
My chest felt hollow, and the ache spread through my entire body until I was shaking.
My parents, Daniel and Ashley Jones, had always favored Summer over me, but I told myself it was just because she was the baby of the family. I figured they gave her extra attention because of her age, and deep down, we were still equals in their eyes.
But what I saw in front of me shattered that illusion completely.
Summer was the only one who mattered to them. I never had.
In that moment, I suddenly didn't want to walk through that door.
But they'd already heard me unlock it.
Daniel and Ashley's smiles vanished the second they spotted me.
Ashley told me without any warmth, "Come sit down."
Looking at her expression, I felt like a dog being ordered around.
They'd left me the seat at the very end of the table, far away from Ambrose. At a glance, I looked like some stranger they'd invited over for dinner.
Ambrose lifted his head, and our eyes met. I caught a flash of guilt in his expression.
Their intentions hit me all at once.
I reached into my pocket with trembling fingers and hit record on my phone.
Part of me still hoped I was just being paranoid. No matter what, I was still their daughter.
But that hope died the next second. Ashley said coldly, "Blaire, Summer's pregnant. The baby is Ambrose's."
Straight to the point. No sugarcoating, no careful wording, no concern for whether I could handle hearing it.
I clenched the fabric of my shirt and forced down the stabbing pain in my chest. I asked with bitter sarcasm, "So?"
Ashley said like it was nothing, "We're canceling your wedding to Ambrose. Summer's taking your place as the bride. That custom dress you had made should fit her perfectly."
My mind went blank, and my heart felt like it had been smashed to pieces!
She knew exactly how much work I'd poured into that wedding dress! She'd seen me stay up night after night making sure every detail was perfect!
She was my mother, and yet she said something so callous, like my life didn't matter at all.
Before I could say anything, Daniel jumped in. "And one more thing, Blaire. For Summer's reputation, you need to show up at the wedding. You'll tell everyone you and Ambrose never had real feelings for each other. Say you fell for someone else, so you called off the engagement. Summer stepped up to marry Ambrose so you could be happy. Got it?"
Their tone was harsh and final. They weren't asking. They were dumping all the blame on me and forcing me to step aside for Summer.
This way, Summer could be with Ambrose without a single stain on her reputation, and I'd be the one drowning in criticism and judgment.
'What a perfect setup,' I thought. 'Did they ever care about me at all?'
I pressed my hand against my chest. Breathing hurt.
I glanced at Ambrose. He was gently spooning soup to Summer's lips, acting like none of this had anything to do with him.
In that moment, it hit me. This whole plan probably came from Ambrose himself, and my parents were more than happy to go along with it.
Summer gave me a smug, challenging look. Her voice was light and cheerful. "Blaire, Ambrose and I are really in love. You wouldn't want to tear us apart, right? Besides, you're not really his type anyway."
I lowered my eyes. The mockery in her words came through loud and clear.
I almost wanted to laugh. Thank God I'd been recording this whole conversation. Otherwise, how could I ever defend myself against my own parents throwing me under the bus like this?
They never even considered whether I could accept this. They only loved Summer.
Right then, I finally accepted the truth. My parents didn't love me.
I'd compromised too many times before, but not this time. This time, I wouldn't back down.
I was going to expose everything they said at that wedding. Every single word.
My eyes burned with angry tears. I looked up and sneered at her. "True love? You mean when you threw yourself at my fiancé? Got knocked up before you even had a ring on your finger? That's what Mom and Dad taught you, Summer?"
Summer's face went white, then red. Her expression twisted with rage.
I spoke slowly and clearly. "You're cheap, Summer!"
- Writer
