“I’d still like to hear it.”
I stare at my little girl, faced with the stunning realization that she’s not so little anymore. Somewhere along the way, she transformed into a young lady, and I barely noticed.
“Alright. I guess you’re getting close to old enough. Well, once upon a time, I was engaged to be married.”
Isla’s eyes bulge. “You were?”
I nod. “It was a bad decision, honey. The man I was going to marry… He was definitely not a nice guy. And I didn’t realize it until the very, very last minute.”
I decide to spare her the gory details. The shattering glass. The wild fury in his eyes. As wizened as she seems sometimes, I still want to preserve what’s left of the innocence in her.
“So Aunt Emma created a distraction and I took the wedding car and drove off.”
I smile at the fasci
