“As ready as we’ll ever be,” I smiled, pouring them both fresh cups of coffee.
As the boys happily devoured their pancakes, Eleanor leaned in close to me, keeping her voice low so the twins wouldn’t hear.
“Did… did Brandon ever try to reach out to you again?” she asked softly.
I shook my head quietly. “Not in over two years.”
After the night of our ruined engagement party, Brandon’s life had spiraled into the reality he had tried so hard to avoid. Stripped of his family’s financial backing and forced to pay his own way, he had bounced between mediocre jobs and tiny apartments. The last I had heard through mutual acquaintances, he was working long hours at an entry-level logistics firm, still bitter, alone, and regretting the arrogant ultimatum that had cost him his fiancé, his family, and his future.
“Good,” Eleanor nodded, patting my hand gently. “He made his choice. And you built a beautiful family without him.”
