ffee shop felt thick and

avis, fidgeted with his spoon, his eyes d

and Richard, sat

own with a soft click

with a sweetness I no longer trusted. "We' ve

teen week

arriage. The Davis family would provide a dowry of $380,000, a gesture my parents insisted on not for the money, but as a si

n to beat a l

00 is more appropriate. And a big, stuffy hotel wedding feels so... impersonal. We t

ashed to $52,000. A five-star hotel rece

is face a mask of stern seriousness. I looked at Liam, pleading w

at his spoon, refu

e, and it had nothing

stroom," I managed to say,

e. The hallway was quiet. As I passed a small alcove where the staff kept the

, no longer sweet, bu

e said, her laugh a harsh cackle. "Look

does she have? She' s trapped. Her family won' t want the shame

s not going anywhere. We can save a fortune! That $380,000 was rid

It was Liam. "Mom, don

family. That money is better spent on us, on our future. Not on some flashy par

h to stifle a gasp. The cold, hard truth

ed goods. A ba

thought Liam had for me, the respect I thought his parents held, it was all a lie. A careful

n my veins. The initial shock and hurt morphed into something else, something

cream at them? B

ected. That' s what the

, wiped the stunned expression from my face, and replaced it with a ma

hey all looked up, their faces a m

one in particular. I let the silence

o Susan with a s

e nice. But... the guest list is over two hundred people. Will your backyard be big enough? And what

they would react to a practical problem,

issive hand, her b

ust get some burgers and hot dogs. It' s more casual, more fun! People wil

s about being frugal. A valuable l

s so thick I cou

d patted my hand. Her touch felt

priorities have to shift. A big wedding is just a one-day party, but a family' s financial s

kind, maternal expression. All I saw was a predator, h

she said, her voice a low, convinc