But after Adrian’s death, I had barely spoken to his family.
Maybe they thought attending another wedding would be too painful for me.
Maybe Julian thought seeing him stand at an altar would remind me of everything I had lost.
I tried not to take it personally.
Then I noticed something on Colleen’s wrist.
A corsage.
The corsage I had made that morning.
It was for the groom’s mother.
Colleen glanced at me and quickly followed the coordinator away.
I stood there watching her disappear.
Something still didn’t feel right.
I tried to explain it away.
Maybe she felt awkward seeing me.
Maybe she thought I would be upset.
Maybe she felt guilty because Julian was getting married only three months after Adrian’s funeral.
Whatever the reason, I told myself to let it go.
I had work to do.
There were arrangements to finish.
Candles needed to be placed.
The ceremony flowers needed one final inspection.
So I returned to work.
But a few minutes later, I saw Colleen again.
She was near the groom’s room.
This time, I almost walked away.
Of course she was there.
Her son was getting married.
Still, the way she moved bothered me.
She looked around first.
Then she slipped inside.
I heard her voice through the door.
“You need to hurry. The ceremony starts in 20 minutes.”
A man’s voice answered.
I stopped breathing.
It wasn’t Julian.
I knew that voice.
I had heard it first thing in the morning.
I had heard it whisper beside me in movie theaters.
I had heard it argue about cake.
I had heard it laugh across our kitchen table.
But that was impossible.
I moved closer to the door.
There was a narrow opening.
Through it, I could see Colleen.
Then the man stepped into view.
My hand flew over my mouth.
Adrian.
Alive.
And wearing the same suit he had bought for our wedding.
For several seconds, I couldn’t move.
My mind refused to accept what my eyes were seeing.
Adrian looked at himself in the mirror.
“Does everything look okay?” he asked.
Colleen reached up and adjusted his tie.
“You look perfect.”
He smiled.
“Good. I don’t want anything going wrong today.”
I stumbled backward.
My heart was pounding so violently that I could hear it.
Three months earlier, I had stood beside Adrian’s grave believing I would never hear his voice again.
Now he was alive.
His mother knew.
And both of them had allowed me to mourn him.
I turned and ran.
He Had Let Me Bury Him
I barely made it to the restroom before I broke down.
I locked the door and cried until I could barely breathe.
My hands were shaking.
My chest hurt.
My entire body felt like it had forgotten how to function.
Then my phone rang.
It was my assistant.
“Meredith? The coordinator is looking for you. They’re about to start.”
I stared 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 closed my eyes.
All I could see was Adrian.
Alive.
Smiling.
Preparing to get married.
While I had spent three months grieving him.
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
I wiped my face.
I picked up my florist badge.
And suddenly, I knew exactly what I needed to do.
I was going to find out the truth.
And I was going to make Adrian face what he had done to me.
I stood in front of the mirror for another few seconds.
Part of me wanted to leave.
Another part wanted to run straight to Adrian and demand an explanation.
But neither option felt real anymore.
He had watched me bury him.
His mother had held my hand while I cried.
Someone had arranged a funeral.
Someone had put his coffin into the ground.
People had brought food to my apartment and sat beside me while I stared blankly at the walls.
Adrian had allowed all of it.
And now, only 20 minutes away, he was preparing to marry another woman.
I washed the remaining mascara from beneath my eyes and walked out.
My assistant, Kendra, found me near the service hallway.
She immediately frowned.
“What happened?”
“I need you to do something for me.”
“Anything.”
“Stay with the flowers. Don’t let anyone move the arrangements.”
She stared at me.
“Meredith, you’re scaring me.”
“I know.”
“Should I call someone?”
“Not yet.”
I walked toward the ceremony area.
Guests were already taking their seats.
I recognized almost no one.
That hurt more than I expected.
Adrian had apparently built an entire life around whatever secret he had been keeping, and somehow I had been erased from it.
Then I saw Julian.
He was standing near the back row.
For a brief moment, relief washed over me.
Julian could explain this.
He had to.
I crossed the room.
“Julian.”
He turned.
The color drained from his face.
That was all the answer I needed.
“You knew.”
His eyes immediately shifted toward the hallway.
“Meredith, please. This isn’t the place to—”
“You knew he was alive.”
“Keep your voice down.”
I laughed once.
It didn’t sound like me.
“I stood beside your family at his funeral.”
Julian rubbed his forehead.
“Please. Let me explain after the ceremony.”
“The ceremony?”
He lowered his voice.
“It’s complicated.”
“No.”
I shook my head.
“Complicated is changing a wedding date. Complicated is discovering your fiancé cheated on you. This is something else.”
A few guests looked in our direction.
Julian stepped closer.
“Adrian was going to tell you.”
“When?”
He didn’t answer.
I felt something inside me change.
