Chapter Thirty-One
Tristan
I had just finished a Skype meeting with my senior manager at the LA resort when I heard a sharp knocking on my office door. Frowning, I checked the time. My next appointment was not for another hour, and Ben was not due back for another fifteen minutes at least.
“Come in,” I called.
A second later, the door to my office flew open, and Molly walked inside. Her face was pale and strained, and her eyes looked angry and slightly red. I stood up and walked to her immediately, worried about what had caused her to react that way
“Molly,” I said, reaching for her. “Are you alright?”
“Don’t,” she said, turning her hand up to block mine. “Don’t touch me.”
I froze in place as I felt a wave of confusion take over. Obviously, she was mad at me… I just didn’t know what I had done. She had given me no indication that there had been anything wrong in the last few days. Was it perhaps something that had happened just now?
“I… Molly,” I said slowly. “I don’t know why you’re so upset?”
She stared at me for a moment, as though she were trying to figure something out. Her hand was still up, preventing me from approaching her. There was something in her expression that made me both scared and sad at the same time. There was intensity in her eyes that made me take pause. Whatever she was feeling right now was serious. Whatever she had seen or heard had made a big impact. I noticed that her body was stiff, but her hands were shaking.
“Molly, can I get you a glass of water.”
She didn’t answer me. In fact, it felt like she hadn’t even heard me. I let the silence stretch out, hoping for some indication of what was going on. Finally, she turned away from me, as though she couldn’t bear to look at me any longer.
“Molly, please,” I said. “I’m worried… What’s going on?”
“How long?” she asked at last.
“What?”
“How long has this been going on?”
“What?” I demanded. “How long has what been going on?”
“The women, Tristan,” she said, and her voice shook on my name.
Her emotion broke my heart, but I couldn’t bring myself to approach her. I was trying to understand what she was talking about. Had someone tried to break us up by telling Molly some rid
iculous story about another woman? Or maybe it was Jennifer… had her presence here inspired the staff to spread rumors that had maybe reached Molly? What if she’d found out about Molly and me and was trying to get back at me? A hundred different possibilities rolled around in my head.
“Molly, I don’t get it… What women are you talking about?” I asked. “Who told you this? I would have thought you’d know better than to believe anyone else.”
Molly smiled, but it was an angry smile. “I believe my own eyes,” she said. “Can you argue with them?”
I frowned. “Can you please, please explain to me what happened? How am I supposed to defend myself if I don’t know what you do?”
Molly’s expression seemed to smooth out for a moment. “I wanted to surprise you today,” she said. “I heard you were going to be in your suite this evening and so I decided to head down there and surprise you.”
“I—”
Molly cut me off before I could say anything more. “I walked in hoping to find you, but what I found instead was a naked woman in your shower.”
I stared at Molly for a moment and then suddenly everything clicked into place: Emma. Molly had seen Emma in my shower. I was just about to open my mouth to give her the explanation when Molly spoke.
“Unless… Did you even know someone was in your suite?” she asked, and there was desperation in her tone. “Was it just some employee taking advantage of the amenities because they know you rarely use your suite? Is that it? Is this just a huge misunderstanding?”
All I had to say was a simple yes. And yet, I realized that I couldn’t do it. My tongue curled in on itself and suddenly it hit me. I saw the pain on Molly’s face. I saw what the possibility of my future mistakes could do to her. I had been battling with this very thing for the last few weeks. I had been terrified to let her down. I had been terrified to revert back to my old ways and leave Molly broken and devastated.
What was our future? I honestly didn’t know. Could I give Molly everything she deserved? Could I give her a life of domestic bliss? Could I give her the safety of a home and the promise of children? Could I give her fidelity and loyalty and attention? I wanted to do all those things with her, but I wasn’t sure if I could. I wasn’t sure if I had the propensity to go the distance.