Back then, their futures had seemed so final. The announcements made, the wedding preparations undertaken. There hadn't been room for negotiations, not when her parents were insisting upon a wedding sooner than later. Maggie was a caged bird, then, batting frantically against the bars as the love of her life walked away.

"I couldn't." She answered helplessly. "The wedding was already in the works, everyone knew about it. You were finally making headway in your career. I didn't want to jeopardize that...it seemed...it seemed important at the time."